
Glass r ?,. ( ' 

Book ,T5ft3 



/i>(0 



14,000 MILES IN THE 'SUNBEAM 
IN 1883 



AND THE CARE-WORN TOILER IN DUSTY WAYS 

THE THINGS THAT I SEE SHALL SEE, 
AND SHALL GIVE TO THE GIVER HIS SONG OF PRAISE 

as he shares my .ioy with me.' 

Bishop of Bbdfoub. 




With 292 Illustrations engraved on wood by G. Pearson and J. Cooper 
after drawings by R. T. Pritchett 

NEW YORK : HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY. 

1885 






AUTHOR'S EDITION. 




PRINTED BY 

DANIEL G. F. CLASS, 

NEW YORK. 




T is with great diffidence that, stimulated 
it may be by the kind reception which 
has been accorded to my previous efforts, 
I venture again to put before the public 
a book of travel. The short-comings of 
the work are indeed only too plainly 
apparent to me ; but should it be found 
to possess any attractions, the fact will be due in great 
measure to the talent displayed, both by artist and engravers, 
in the illustrations, the sketches for which were, as a rule, 
prepared under circumstances of haste and difficulty. 

I owe an equal debt of gratitude to the friends who ac- 
companied me on the voyage, and to those who have since 
helped me with and encouraged me to persevere in my task. 
From ill-health I have been often tempted to abandon it in 
despair, and its completion has been considerably delayed 
from the same cause. 



I can only venture to hope that my readers may be 



Vlll 



PREFACE. 



disposed to receive the result of my labours in as kindly 
a spirit as possible, and to treat even the most glaring 
faults with leniency. 




5 N vi Ir rU RQ \ * '<* 



CHAPTER PAGE 

I. England to Madeira . i 

II. Madeira . 23 

III. Madeira 35 

IV. Madeira 57 

V. Madeira to Trinidad ....... 80 

VI. Trinidad . . . . . 93 

VII. Trinidad . . . .104 

VIII. Trinidad . . . . . . . . . . 124 

IX. Trinidad . . . . , . . . . .150 

X. Venezuela . . . . , . . . . . 163 

XI. Jamaica 203 

XII. Across Jamaica ... ..... 244 

XIII. Jamaica to the Bahamas ....... 285 

XIV. The Bahamas 307 

XV. Bahamas 328 

XVI. Bahamas to Bermudas 359 

XVII. Bermuda 389 

XVIII. Bermuda . . . . 419 

XIX. Bermuda to the Azores 458 

XX. The Azores 470 

Postscript 510 

Appendix . . 513 

Index . . . , e . . . . . .521 



wmm 





PAGE 




TAGF. 


Title-page. 




Mountain Huts . . . . 


38 


Dedication. 




Child's Funeral 


40 


The Bog Walk, Jamaica 


viii 


Hammock .... 


42 


Farewell to the Old Countr\ 


I 


A Happy Trio . 


44 


Dartmouth en fete . 


3 


Prepared for the Worst 


45 


One of the ' Castle ' Line 


4 


Landing at Calheta . 


47 


All Afloat 


5 


Watermill .... 


48 


Scalded .... 


6 


Babacal .... 


49 


Ladder washed away 


8 


Where is Sir Boger ? . 


5° 


11.45 A - M - .... 


10 


VlNTE-ClNCO FoNTES . 


51 


11.46 A.M 


10 


The Fairies' Cave 


53 


Drenched .... 


11 


Old Fort .... 


54 


Cascaes Bay 


12 


In the English Cemetery . 


56 


Muletas 


13 


The Start .... 


57 


Fruit Market, Lisbon 


14 


Preparations for the Expedi 




The Old Almoner 


15 


tion ..... 


58 


Lisbon, Market Scene 


16 


Capitao .... 


59 


Hay-boats off Palmella 


17 


Pico Buivo .... 


60 


Taking Sights under Difficui 




En route .... 


60 


ties 


17 


An Al Fresco Laundry . 


61 


Out to Dry .... 


19 


A ' Mitherless Bairn ' 


62 


Norham Castle in the Olden 




El Balcao .... 


62 


Time .... 


20 


A Startling Incident . 


63 


A Heavy Sea 


2 3 


The Local Banana . 


64 


Madeira .... 


24 


Santa Anna . 


66 


Good-bye .... 


25 


Spinning .... 


66 


Bullock Cart . 


27 


The Arbour, Santa Anna 


67 


The Loo Kock 


29 


Fayal .... 


68 


Peasant near Funchal 


31 


Bibeiro Frio 


• 69 


The ' Endeavour ' 


34 


Peasants returning from thi 




Soccorridos 


35 


Festival 


• 70 


PlC-NIC AT CABO GlRAO . 


• 37 


Penha d'Aguia 


7 1 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 





page 


Pyrotechnic Display 


• 72 


Machico .... 


72 


Canical .... 


74 


Specimen of Fossil 


74 


Fossil Land 


75 


On the Shore at Canical . 


77 


Mrs. Page's Sedan Chair 


79 


The Hour of Midnight 


80 


Scrubbing Decks. A Coli 




Bath 


81 


Sweet Potatoes . 


82 


S.S. ' Armathwaite ' 


84 


' Up above the World so high. 


85 


Eainbow and Cumulus 


86 


St. John Ambulance Lecture 


88 


Cloud Effects 


89 


Cloud and Shower . 


92 


Trinidad .... 


93 


Cormorant on Raft . 


93 


Tobago ..... 


93 


First View of South America 




AND THE BOCAS 


95 


Signal Station 


97 


Wreck in the Boca de lo>- 




Huevos .... 


97 


Port of Spain 


100 


Government House . 


102 


Market Day at Trinidad 


104 


Local Dog Tax . 


104 


Timit Cap 


107 


Group of Vegetation 


in 


Menu ..... 


114 


Blue Basin Falls 


117 


Prince Henry of Prussia . 


121 


The Old Anchor 


123 


Pitch Lake (six views) . 


124 


Crossing the Planks 


127 


Santa Maddalena . 


130 


Moriche Palm . 


131 


Parasol Ants 


132 


Heavy Load 


134 



Claxton Pier 

Sea Ferns, Swamp, San Juan 

' Johnny Crows ' . 

Cacao Baking 

Passion-Flower Fruit . 

In the Verandah 

Coolies' Serenade 

Jibbing Horses Crossing 

Streams .... 
San Josef .... 
Flying Ants 
M. Nicolas . 
Hut in the Woods . 
MaraCcas Falls 
Mid-day Halt . 
Old Machete ; and Swizzle 

Sticks .... 
Near the Maraccas Falls • 
Group of Vegetation . 
The ' Olga ' . . . 
Testigos and Margarita 
Coolie Necklet and Ornaments 
Group on the Quarter-Deck 
Macuto .... 
Hotel Nettuno . 
Menu .... 

Landing-Place, La Guayra . 
On the Boad to Caracas . 
New Gun in an Old Fort 
Cacti and Aloes 
Tropical Forest . 
Frightening Locusts 
An Awkward Mistake . 
Entrance to Caracas 
General View of Caracas . 
Locust .... 
Cathedral and Plaza . 
The La Guayra and Caracas 

Railway". 
Mongoose .... 
Pedrera Point . 



page 
135 
136 
137 
142 
142 
146 
148 



ILL US TRA TIONS. 



PAGE 

Sunset off Buen Ayre . . 203 
Sounding in the Dinghy . . 203 
Grand Sunrise .... 206 
Our Pilot and his Boat . . 207 
Newcastle and the Blue 

Mountains .... 208 
A Black Squall . . . . 208 
Port Boyal . . . .210 
Old Kock Fort . . . . 212 
Taking down the Light . .212 
View from the Old Bock Fort 213 
Dockyard Look-out . . -215 
Island Boat . . . . . 217 
Schooner with Mast-funnel . 217 
Parish Church, Kingston . 219 

Some of the Congregation . 219 
Elm Tree Cottage . ... 221 
Private Soldier, West India 

Begiment .... 225 
View up the Valley from Gor- 
don Town ..... 227 

Lizard 227 

The Ford. Sable Laundresses 222 
Huts at Newcastle . . . 230 
View from Newcastle . . . 231 
Fern Walk .... 235 
A Narrow Path . . . . 237 
Mess-House .... 239 
Miss Burton's Hotel . . . 241 
West Indian Menu . . . 242 
Landing Place, Port Henderson 244 
A Break-Down. Johnny-Crows 247 
The Cathedral, Spanish Town 250 
Linstead Market . . . 252 
Orange Harvest . . . . 255 
Pitcher Plant, Orchid, and 

Orchis 257 

The Gulley Boad . . . 267 

Ocho Bios 270 

Belmont ..... 273 
In the Park .... 275 



page 
On the Shore . . . . 277 

H.M.S. 'Dido' . . . .279 

Port Antonio and Harbour . 281 
View at Port Antonio . . 283 
' Sunbeam ' by Moonlight . 284 

Los Altares .... 285 

Another Moonlight Effect . 289 
Maysi Point and Lighthouse . 290 
yunque de baracoa . . . 292 
Bacing the Bbigantine . . 293 
Gulf-Stream Bottles . . . 296 
Great Isaac Light and Hen 

and Chickens . . . 298 

Stirrup Cay Light . . . 301 
Bahama Turbot . . . 303 

Farewell to Stirrup Cay . . 306 
Nassau ..... 307 

The ' Triton ' . . . 307 

Montague Fort . . .310 

Diving Operations . . .312 
Sponge -Glasses . . . 315 

Killarney Lake . . . . 320 

A Wrecked Forest . . . 320 
Government House, Nassau . . 322 
Kite-flying . . i . . 324 
Diving for Gorgonias . . 328 
Ship Bailway . ' . . . 333 
Messrs. Sawyer's Sponge Yard 337 
Sponge Schooners . . . 339 
Silk Cotton Tree . . . 345 
Idols . . . . . . 347 

Conch-Shells and Sea-Fan . 348 
The ' Message of Peace ' . . 355 
In the Pine-Apple Fields . 358 
Sunrise at Sea . • . . 359 

Eleuthera Boats . . . 359 
Sargasso Weed . . . . 364 

Bemarkable Sunset . . . 366 
Opossum ..... 368 

Bevolving Storm (diagram) . 371 
Topmasts Housed . . . . 373 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



' The Beauty ' . 

Dining under Difficulties . 

A Squall .... 

Brading in Jeopabdy . 

A Catastrophe . 

Barque at Sunrise 

St. David's Light and Cave 

Bermuda 
Fort St. George . 
Health Boat 

H.M.S. ' Northampton ' Aground 
Scenes in Hamilton Harbour 
Water Party 
' Bermuda ' Floating Dock 
Angel-Fish .... 
Cow-Fish .... 
Sea-Pens .... 
Hog-Fish .... 
Somerset Island Ferry-Boat 
A Moonlight Passage 
Neptune's Grotto 
Walsingham Caves . 
Moore's Calabash Tree 
St. George's and Wrecks 
St. David's Lighthouse 
Churchyard, St. George's 
Mr. Bertram ... 
Fairyland .... 
Gibbs Hill Lighthouse 
Bermuda Yacht-racing 
Portuguese Man-of-War 
Back of the Cottage 
Torpedo Practice 
Bermuda from- the Commis 

sioner's House 

n ■»>•'•• 

Honey Bear 
Farewell to Bermuda . 



PAGE 

375 
377 
382 

383 
385 



389 

39i 
394 
395 
397 
401 

403 
406 

407 
409 
411 
414 

417 
419 
422 
424 
426 
428 
43o 
43 1 
433 
436 
440 
442 

445 
448 

45° 
45i 
452 
454 



Pilot hanging on 
The Last of Bermuda 
Almost a Waterspout 
Flying through it by Moon 

■light .... 

End of the Log Line . 
Crossing Top-gallant Yard 
Lowering Head-sail . 
Moonlight and Rainbow 

Pico 

fayal ; compreda point 
Ponta Delgada, Landing Place 
Market Day, Ponta Delgada 
Ferrara Point . 
Ribeira Grande . 



An Old-fashioned Bedstead 
Bocca d 'Inferno 
Caldeira di Tambour . 
Provocao . 
The Dance . 
Villa Franca . 
In the Village Square 
Past Christmas Eves 



Christmas Post Bag 

Racing along 

Boyal Sunbeam Theatre 

Firm Friends . 

Sir William Thomson's Sound 

ing Apparatus . 
Rame Head 
Mount Edgcumbe, looking over 

Drake's Island . 
At Rest. The ' Sunbeam ' in 

Dry Dock 
Monkey in Engine Room . 



PAGE 

45 6 
457 
458 

462 
466 
466 
466 
468 
470 
470 

473 
478 
478 
480 
481 
482 
484 
485 
487 
491 
492 

493 
496 

498 
499 
501 

501 
503 
505 

506 
507 

5°9 

5" 
519 



Chart showing Temperature of Air and Water 



To face page 520 




Track Chart .... 

Madeira 

Trinidad ..... 

Venezuela 

La Guayra and Caracas Baiiayay 

Jamaica 

Bahama Islands 

Bermuda Islands .... 

Azores ..... 



Commencement of booh 

To face 2 )a 9 e j6 

94 



204 
308 

390 
472 



LADY BRASSEY'S WORKS. 

Authorized Editions. 
ABOUND THE "WORLD IN THE YACHT " SUNBEAM." 
SUNSHINE AND STOEM IN THE EAST. 
IN THE TRADES, THE TROPICS, AND THE ROARTNG- 
FORTIES. 

HENRY HOLT & CO., 

Publishers, New York, 




CHAPTER I. 

ENGLAND TO MADEIRA. 

Men were made to roam. 
My meaning is —it hath been always thus : 
They are athirst for mountains and sea foam. 
Heirs of this world, what wonder if perchance 
They long to see their grand inheritance ! 

WE arrived at Dartmouth late on the evening of Septem- 
ber 27th, 1883, and proceeded straight on board the 
' Norham Castle,' in the ' Britannia's ' steam-launch, kindly 
lent us by Captain Bowden- Smith. Although the bulk of 
our luggage - had been shipped in London, our somewhat 
numerous packages and parcels comprised a good many little 
odds and ends that had been forgotten until the last moment, 
as is almost always the case when starting on a long voyage, 



ON BOARD RHAM CASTLE: 



l • r hat indefii to regions not hitherto ex- 

plorqd|. and for which very authority recommends 

something novel in I i impedimenta as absolutely 

indispensable to comfo existence. 

We found everytb torily arranged on board, 

and that the rest of , who had embarked at the 

Docks, had enjoyed spood passage round from the 

Thames, and were all s. n very happily. The child- 

ren were soon in bed a >; and we speedily followed 

their example, so as to be able to make the most of the 
morning of the day on which we were to leave England for 
so long a time. 

The cabin on deck, which Captain Winchester had so 
courteously placed at my disposal, was not only spacious, but 
was comfortably and even luxuriously fitted up. From the 
skylight hung a basket of flowers, on either side of which 
sweet potatoes, growing in glasses, sent their tender shoots, and 
bright green tendrils right across the ceiling. The furniture 
comprised a wardrobe, sofa, easy-chair, writing-table, and 
bookshelves ; so that with some more flowers from dear Nor- 
manhurst, and a plentiful supply of newspapers, periodicals, 
and books, I felt at once quite at home. 

The view from the windows (not ports) early the next 
morning was charming. In the east the sun rose behind the 
wooded hills that, dotted with old houses and modern villas, 
slope gently from the placid waters of the land-locked harbour: 
westward the eye dwelt on the sharply contrasted effects of 
light and shade on the picturesque and old-fashioned town of 
Dartmouth. 

There is no place in England quite equal to Dartmouth 
for beauty and originality ; and at the period of the regatta, 
in August, it is indeed the gayest of spectacles to watch the 
innumerable yachts, boats, and craft of all kinds, and the 
whole town brightly decorated with flags by day, and with 



THE 'BRITANNIA: 



myriads of little coloured lamps hung in festoons by night, 
while bands play, and the people seem to enjoy themselves 
more than an English crowd generally condescends to do. 

At half-past nine the steam-launch came to take us on 
board the ' Britannia,' which vessel we found in the same 
perfect order as usual : the cadets all looking well and happy. 
Surely, if boys destined for the navy are capable of acquiring the 
necessary knowledge anywhere, they should do so here, where 
advantages of every kind are so abundant. The old models 
of ships used on board for purposes of instruction were very 
good : but the new ones that have been lately added are even 
more useful and complete. We were greatly interested in 
listening to a 
lecture that 

was being .^^-^ 

given by one 
of the in- 
structors on 
the model of 
an ironclad, 
divided into 
four sections; 

so that the whole of her interior economy and construction 
could be thoroughly understood. Commander Bainbridge told 
me that the lads worked well at the models, flag and sail 
drill, signalling, and compass instruction; but that naviga- 
tion and Euclid were quite a different matter, and that it was, 
as a rule, hard to get the cadets to take an interest in those 
subjects. 

The beauty of the morning had now entirely faded away ; 
and one could almost imagine that some of the dear ones left 
behind were shedding gentle tears at our departure. To put 
it more prosaically, a regular west-country mist had come on, 
•depressing in itself and making everything look damp, dreary, 

b2 




DARTMOUTH EN FETE 



PARTINGS. 



and forlorn. After a brief walk on shore we returned to the 
' Norham Castle,' just in time to transact a little final busi- 




uNIi OF THE CASTLE LINE 



• : ness, and to see the last sad partings between those 
' outward bound ' and those ' left behind.' As- 
suredly those who go down to the sea in ships, and have their 
business in the great waters, especially those who travel fre- 
quently in large steamers, calling at many ports, and carrying 
passengers of all 1 at'onalities, behold strange and impressive 
sights, and have better opportunities of observing human 
nature in its various phases than fall to the lot of most people. 

Such were my reflections as I heard the last starting-bell 
ring and looked out upon the flotilla of small boats by which 
we were surrounded, each containing one or more occupants 
interested in someone on board. At length the hawser was 
slipped from the big buoy ; the engines began to move almost 
imperceptibly ahead; and our last link with old England was 
severed. Heaven grant us all a safe voyage and a happy 
return ! 

We had scarcely got outside Dartmouth, when the ' Nor- 
ham Castle' began to pitch and roll most unpleasantly. As 



A MINIATURE DELUGE. 



S 



the afternoon went on, matters became worse. A strong head- 
wind was encountered, with a somewhat dense fog and a good 
deal of rain, which increased towards six o'clock. Two hours 
later, when we sighted Ushant, the vessel was rolling heavily 
and shipping much water forward ; in consequence of which 
I decided to sleep below instead of in the Captain's cabin : 
the steward promising to pack up all my things and assur- 
ing me that they would be quite safe. I was too sea-sick to 
discuss the matter further ; and, having seen the children 
safely secured in their berths, I lay down on the sofa in their 
cabin, where, holding on tightly to the side, I slumbered in 

the semi-conscious 
condition one falls 
into at sea in 
rough weather 
until I was 
suddenly 
awakened 
by pierc- 
ing cries 
for help. 
On rising 
I found 
that the 
water was 
washing 
all about the 
cabin, and that 
my big boxes, little 
boxes, bags, baskets, &c., 
were floating backwards 
and forwards across the 
floor. ' Sir Roger,' my black poodle, had jumped on the 
sofa, which was fairly dry ; and, keeping his balance with the 







ALL AFLOAT 



A MISSIONARY'S WIFE IN TROUBLE. 



greatest difficulty, surveyed the scene with an air of calm 
disapprobation, occasionally uttering a low growl of decided 
annoyance and remonstrance, while I quickly put on an ulster 
and sea-boots. Outside the cabin the water was pouring 
like a cataract down the companion ; while the deck above 
leaked like a sieve, producing the effect of a continuous shower 
bath. Some accident seemed also to have happened to a 

steam-pipe, judging from 
the clouds of steam which 
were escaping, and from 
the cries of two men who 
complained that they had 
been scalded by the boiling 
water. Struggling along 
the passage between the 
first and second class sa- 
loons, I found the water 
sufficiently deep to fill my 
high sea-boots and to 
compel poor ' Sir Eoger/ 
scalded after a few piteous cries 

and fruitless attempts to 
walk on his hind legs, to swim after me. I soon met the 
poor creature whose shrieks had first roused me : — a mis- 
sionary's wife on her way to South Africa, who was attired 
in the scantiest of garments, and trying feebly to come aft 
and get on deck. She implored me most earnestly to tell 
her if I thought we were going to the bottom ' at once,' in 
reply to which appeal I assured her that I did not think 
there was any immediate danger and that the ship only 
leaked from above because, by an unfortunate omission, her 
decks and coamings had not been recaulked after her last 
voyage to a hot climate in fine weather. It was now evident 
that a very heavy gale was blowing ; for the ship was not 




DROWNING AS A MATTER OF TASTE. 



only rolling at an angle which made it almost impossible to 
stand, but was ' labouring in a way I did not at all like and 
shipping large masses of water, a vast quantity of which 
streamed below. When the poor lady asked me if there 
was any danger, I suppose that I must have hesitated a 
little in my answer, for she added immediately, ' Think 
how dreadful it would be to be drowned and go to feed the 
fishes ! ' For the moment I could think of no more re- 
assuring remark than that we must all die some day and 
somehow, and that I thought drowning was preferable to 
many other modes of death. My statement so astonished the 
poor Missionary's wife that I took the opportunity of her 
hesitation in replying to suggest that she should return to 
her cabin : a work of no little difficulty, for in her fright she 
had entirely forgotten the number and situation of her state- 
room. Ultimately, with the assistance of another passenger 
we found it, not however without putting our heads into 
many other cabins, all in a sloppy condition, and containing 
more or less miserable and terrified occupants. Meanwhile, 
the gale continued to increase ; and the water continued to 
pour through the shrunk decks and other wood-work, in spite 
of the sky-lights being battened down, and all that could be 
done to stop the leakage. 

After my midnight excursion I returned to my cabin ; 
propped myself in a corner ; and proceeded to pass the night 
as best I could, in what might be regarded as a very nearly 
air-tight but anything but water-tight iron box, rolling about 
at an angle of at least 45 degrees. Our berth was close to the 
pantry, the noises proceeding from which department were 
really appalling. First came vast crashes of crockery, the 
fragments of which appeared to get gradually broken up into 
smaller pieces as the ship rolled backwards and forwards, 
producing a sound like the breaking of waves on a rocky 
shore. By degrees the fragments seemed to become smaller 



THE MORNING AFTER THE GALE. 



and smaller, till towards morning the noise produced was that 
of the sea breaking on very small pebbles, varied by an occa- 
sional fresh crash, as something else was carried away. About 
5 a.m. a heavier sea than usual struck the ship, which seemed 
to quiver for a minute on her beam-ends before she righted ; 
and there was a considerable cracking and splintering of 
wood-work to be heard, even above the roaring of the gale. 
I was afterwards informed that this sea 
washed away the starboard accommodation- 
ladder, and the meat-safe, and very nearly 
lifted overboard the big horse- 
""^^ box, notwithstanding the strong 

lashings by which it was secured. 




LADDER WASHED AWAY 



More than half of it was torn away ; and the poor Clydesdale 
that was inside had to weather the remainder of the gale with 
only one side to his house. The short-horn bull, which was 
on his way to Natal, and the good cow that supplied us with 
milk, fared rather better, being on the lee side of the deck. 

As day broke, matters began to mend and the gale to 
moderate. One of our stewards came and helped me to get 



T^p CAPTAIN'S CABIN WRECKED. 9 

the children up ; for our maids, though quite well, were per- 
fectly helpless. Overwhelmed, I suppose, by the novelty of 
the situation, they evidently meant to do nothing but lie in bed 
all day. With the usual tenacity of maids in such matters, 
instead of being satisfied with the cabin-boxes and bags pro- 
vided for them for the voyage, they had insisted on having 
their own two big trunks in their cabin, where, washing back- 
wards and forwards in water seven or eight inches deep, 
the extra luggage became unpleasant articles of encumbrance. 
The chief steward took pity on the children and me and 
moved us to his own cabin, which was dry though small ; and 
there we lay in a little heap, sea-sick and wretched, all day. 
Frederick (our own servant) and the stewards brought me at 
intervals the debris of my property from the Captain's cabin. 
It was truly lamentable to behold this wreckage of my belong- 
ings : everything being utterly and hopelessly ruined — books, 
bags, boots and shoes, alike soaked and useless. Two of the 
panels of the cabin had been smashed in by a heavy sea ; 
and the water had completely filled all the lockers. A great 
deal more must also have come in from above and from all 
sides, for the sofa-berth, a pretty high one, on which most 
of my things had been piled for safety, was inundated. From 
my travelling bag, containing all my little needments, ^more 
than a gallon of water was poured ; while my favourite de- 
spatch bag, in which, among other things, were numerous 
letters of introduction, was reduced to a pulp. The contents 
of a bank-note case were so saturated and mixed together, 
that it was with difficulty the numbers of the notes could be 
read. Soon after we had been moved, the steward brought 
us a little warm water in a tin pan, apologetically explaining 
that every jug in the ship was broken, which news did not 
surprise me, after the appalling noises which we heard last 
night. He also asked us what we should like to have to eat ; 
at the same time suggesting that cooking was difficult, and 



A HOME ON THE 'ROLLING DE^P: 



mentioning that we could not have anything cold, as the 
meat-safe and its contents had been washed overboard. I 
don't think that it mattered much, for nobody appeared to 
have a keen appetite. 

The ship continued to roll and labour heavily, and the 
seas to wash over her fore and aft, making everything above 
and below wet and miserable. One sea, more mountainous 
than its predecessors, broke, as we were afterwards informed, 
thirty feet over the heads of those on the bridge. This state 
of things continued without interruption throughout the 
night, until early on Sunday morning, when things began to 
look a little brighter. About noon a few passengers might 
be seen to creep out of their berths and to compare notes on 
the experiences and miseries of the last forty-eight hours. 

It was not an enlivening 
scene ; even now. The 

.... • .... : . i. „ ', 

water was still washing 
about everywhere. It was 
impossible to ha"ve a bath, 
because the ten bath-rooms 
were full of wet cloths and 





Wus-v-w 



\\- i+fe.r.\v\ 



clothes ; the carpets from the cabins were hung up to dry all 
over the place, together with garments of every description ; 



AN ENCAMPMENT IN THE SALOON. 



IE 



while the passages were cumbered with soaked portman- 
teaus, hat-boxes, and luggage of various kinds, which it was 
not practicable to send on deck to be dried, as the sea was still 
coming over freely fore and aft. The saloon was dark and 
airless, owing to the canvas covers on the skylights. There 
too the water was swashing backwards and forwards, three 
or four inches deep. The few people who were in the saloon 
wore mackintoshes and sea-boots. One old gentleman had 
even provided himself with a ' sou'-wester ' and an umbrella, 
and was sitting at the centre table holding on to a large glass 
of whisky and hot water, a necessary precaution against its 
being upset. In another, the driest, corner, was quite a 
picturesque little gipsy-like encampment, consisting of a 
Caffre and a Hottentot nurse with their mistresses' respec- 
tive babies and children, all squatted on the floor on some 
bright coloured blankets and shawls, under umbrellas, with 
rugs and mackintoshes over them to protect them from the 
drippings from above. 

Of course it was useless to think of having the usual church 
service ; but the weather 
continued to improve, 
and towards the after- 
noon many of the pas- 
sengers came up to en- 
joy the bright sunshine 
on the few dry spots on 
deck. Among others, 
our two maids appeared 
in gorgeous array, each 
provided with a novel 
with a yellow cover ; but 
being told by more than 
one person that they would be much better employed below 
drying the clothes and getting things straight, they promptly 




DRENCHED 



AT THE MOUTH OF THE TAG US. 



retired to their berths again and were seen no more. Per- 
haps it was as well for their own comfort that they thus 
vanished, judging from my own experiences ; for, in trying a 
little later on to get to my cabin on deck, I was caught by a 
sea which struck the vessel heavily, and drenched me to the 
skin. 




* 



CASCAES EAY 



The sea was so much smoother when evening came, that at 
dinner there was quite a fair muster of passengers ; including 
a few ladies ; and I decided to sleep in my airy though some- 
what damp cabin on deck again, in preference to the stuffy 
abode below, which the heat of the steam-pipes from the 
pantry rendered almost insufferable. At eleven o'clock we 
made the Burling Light some distance off ; and the next morn- 
ing (Monday, October i) at 4 a.m. we found ourselves rolling 
about at the mouth of the Tagus, waiting for daylight, and a 
pilot to take us over the bar. 

Cascaes Bay, where we have more than once lain in the 
' Albatross,' ' Meteor ' and ' Sunoeam,' waiting for a storm to 
abate, or for the wind to change, looked bright and pretty in 
the early dawn, the little fort of St. Julien just catching the 



A ILEET OF FISHING BOATS. 13 



light between the passing showers ; and as the sun rose, its 
rays produced the most beautiful rainbow effects on the 




mountains of Cintra, and the wooded heights, crowned by 
the Castle of Penha. Cintra, lovely Cintra ! what happy 
days I have spent, time and again, among your groves and 
gardens ! Soon after getting under way again we met a large 
fleet of fishing boats going out to their daily labour, the variety 
of style shown in their shapes and rigs producing a pleasing 
absence of uniformity. Among them might be seen the now 
old-fashioned muletas, with their quaint bows, on board most 
of which a man stood on the gunwale throwing water into the 
sail with a long-handled metal ' skeet.' Others were lateen 
rigged, with a quaint little sail amidships, which in nearly 
every case was now being spread to catch the first faint breeze 
of morning. Each boat seemed to carry a large crew ; and, 
whatever other varieties of style their builders might have 
indulged in, one invariable feature was the representation of 
an eye painted in bold colours on the bow, to guard the 
fishermen from evil, and to ensure the protection of the 
Virgin. 

At the little village of Cascaes some sort of bathing festi- 
val must have been going on, for I never saw so many people 
on the beach there before. The king has a palace close by, 
where he generally resides at this season of the year ; and the 



H 



LISBON. 



place is also much frequented by the Portuguese in summer. 
The views on the water-way up the Tagus to Lisbon, including 
the mountains of Setubal and the Castle of Palmella on the 
heights on the one side, and the large church and picturesque 
Tower of Belem on the other, are delightful. 

You may be sure we lost no time after the anchor was 
dropped in going ashore in the steam-tug, in which Mr. Pinto 
Basto, the Company's agent, had come alongside. Our first 
proceeding on landing was to visit a somewhat interesting 
market, where we enjoyed some fresh green figs and luscious 
grapes ; and then we turned our attention to the finny wonders 
of the deep in the adjacent fish market and the picturesque 
costumes of their vendors. The carriages we had sent for 
having at last arrived, some of our party went on an excursion 
to Belem ; while others, as I did, felt that having already 




FRUIT MARKET, LISBOX 

(a brush sketch) 



conscientiously ' done ' the sights of the 

neighbourhood, we might be allowed to 

amuse ourselves by strolling up and down the streets and 

looking about us. We. went first to the ' Silver' and 'Gold ' 



FRUIT MARKET, LISBON. 



15 




streets which, I was sorry to find, have deteriorated of late. 
'Twenty, or even ten years ago it was possible to pick up 
here the most exquisite brilliants . 
and paste- work in antique settings 

(to say nothing of old orders and , - " 

crosses), at modest prices: now 
everything is modern and reminds 
one only of the Palais Eoyal. We 
consoled ourselves by a visit to 
another market, where we found 
the entrance to the butchers' de- 
partment, to which our coachman 
drove us by mistake, defended by 
six bull-dogs, tied up, but still 
alarmingly fierce. As I led ' Sir 
Eoger,' in terror of his life, past 
them, I confess I felt personally 
uncertain as to whether the fero- 

•cious-looking brutes might not take a piece out of one of 
my own ankles in making a dart at the poodle. Inside the 
market-place, each stall was sheltered by a huge umbrella ; 
and very gay the costumes of the market-women looked 
among the heaps of scarlet tomatoes, orange, green, and red 
capsicums and chillies, oranges, lemons, chestnuts, quinces, 
pears, apples, grapes, figs, bananas, and various other fruits, 
besides vegetables out of number. In one place there was 
an odd-looking old man in a long red coat, something like a 
1 beadle's, collecting coppers for some charitable object ; while 
in another might be seen an aged priest in a violet cassock 
who was making his purchases, followed by a respectable- 
looking old major-domo bearing a huge basket in which 
to place them. A portion of the market was held in red 
wooden sheds, under the shade of some pepper trees, among 
which was one specially picturesque stall, presided over by 



THE OLD ALMONER 



16 



FRUIT MARKET, LISBON. 



a comely dame with a purple and yellow shawl across her 
shoulders, looking like a veritable Pomona among her lus- 
cious autumn fruits and succulent vegetables. The stall was 
hung round with wicker cages and baskets and rush chairs, 
and contained an immense stock of. gourds, pumpkins, and 
vegetable-marrows, which people seemed to purchase, not 
exactly by the yard, but by the foot and even the inch, the 
required length being cut off for each customer. An entire 



•-'.- M 




LISBON*— MARKET SCENE 

marrow would certainly have been 
too voluminous for any family, how- 
ever numerous. Set up on end in 
rows, they looked like the stones 
placed against the sides of the road to protect the pathway or 
the borders of a lawn. 

At two o'clock we had to be on board the tug, in which we 
returned to the steamer laden with fresh fruit, vegetables, 
butter,, &c. The ' Norham Castle ' was still surrounded by 
boats — for although the operation of coaling was finished, she 
was still taking in cargo ; and the decks were crowded with 
people who had come to see their friends, and with vendors 
of every imaginable article of Lisbon manufacture. They were 



LISBON FISHERMEN. 



17 



quickly got rid of, however, and we were soon swiftly steaming 
down the river again. We met all the fishing boats returning 
from their day's water on to the 

work, the men s^S ~"\ sails, and their 

on board still * \- \ decks laden with 

skeeting' the / s /^T \ P^ es °f fi sn °f 




HAT-BOATS OFF I'AL.MELLA 



various sorts. They had evidently had a good take ; and 
the fishermen seemed 
in the highest pos- 
sible spirits. We also 
passed several hay- 
boats, which, except . 
for the shape of the 
bows, differed little in 
appearance from the 
familiar Thames hay- 
flat. Directly we . got 
outside the ship began 
to roll horribly again, 
which made dinner a 
most uncomfortable 

meal. Everybody was glad when it was over ; though on 
deck things were not much more pleasant, for we were still 

c 




TAKING SIGHTS UNDER DIFFICULTIES 



ADVANTAGES OF SMALL VESSELS. 



shipping large quantities of water. There was no alter- 
native, consequently, but to turn in early and hope that the 
next day might bring an improvement. 

The events of the last few days have more than ever con- 
firmed me in the opinion which I have always held, that 
while, up to a certain point, a big ship has advantages over a 
smaller craft in rough weather ; directly you get beyond that 
point and meet with a really heavy gale, it is far preferable 
to be in a buoyant craft of 500 tons, that bounds lightly 
over the waves like a cork, than in one of 4,000 tons that 
goes right through them. Of course the smaller vessel 
may sometimes have to lie hove-to for many days, where 
the larger ship would still be ploughing her way bravely 
against the storm and wind ; but even under those circum- 
stances I think that the former would offer considerable 
advantages in the way of comfort, if not of safety. How I 
have longed for the dear old ' Sunbeam ' during the last 
few days, and how glad I shall be to get on board her 
once more ! 

The next morning was mainly spent in the not very lively 
amusement of sorting the debris from the Captain's cabin, 
throwing overboard what was utterly spoilt, packing for 
England what it was possible to repair, and putting the slight 
valid remnant into my boxes for Madeira. If it had not been 
intensely annoying it would really have been amusing to see 
the curious shapes some of the things had assumed : particu- 
larly boots and shoes that had been afloat in the two drawers 
under the bed, from which gallons after gallons of- water had 
been emptied. In the afternoon the first officer took us all 
over the ship, and even into the chart room, where we were 
allowed to look at the log and see the official description 01 
the occurrences of the last few days. We were also shown 
the clinometer which, having registered a roll of 50 to port 
and 40 to starboard on the night of the storm, judiciously 



AFTER A STORM. 



19 




declined to register any more. The ' Nor- 
ham Castle ' is a spar-decked ship ; and 
the upper decks form delightful prome- 
nades in fine weather. To-day they were 
somewhat curiously decorated with strings 
of boots and shoes, of which there must 
have been many dozen pairs, and with the 
passengers' clothing hanging up to dry. In 
the forward part of the ship there had been 
a considerable diminution among the live 
stock : one hen-coop had gone bodily over- 
board ; while the occupants of the others, 
as well as some of the sheep, had either 
been washed away or drowned in their pens. 
I wonder what the feelings pf a poor Dork- 
ing fowl must be, fresh from a nice comfort- 
able English farm-house, where it pecked 
about as fancy led it, or wandered at its own 
sweet will among sunny orchards rosy with 
flowers, in spring and full of fruit in summer 
and autumn, suddenly to find itself packed 
in a basket, sent off to market, and pent up 
in a closely-crowded coop with hundreds of 
strange congeners on board a vessel which 
rocks and tosses the unhappy bird in the 



20 



CONDITION OF THE LIVE STOCK, 



most unaccountable manner, quite beyond the scope of all 
previous experience, and, perhaps, finally at the mercy of the 
waves in the Bay of Biscay. The poor Clydesdale looked 
very sorry for himself. The short-horn bull, of which the 
stall was 6n the lee-side of the deck, had not suffered so 
much and was pretty cheery ; but the poor cow was lowing 
piteously and, I believe, utterly refused to give any milk. 
The handsome black retriever which General Valiant is 
taking out for Mr. Hinton looked rather miserable ; but a 
little turn on deck and then a warm in the engine-room 
passage soon made him all right. We went all through 
the engine-room, down into the stoke-hole, and even along 
the screw-alley — in fact wherever the chief engineer was 
good enough to take us. He showed us the machinery for 




XORHAM CASTLE, IN THE OLDEN TIME 



producing the electric light and for working the refrigerator 
to preserve provisions ; both perfect in their way. In fact, 



MUSIC IN THE SALOON. 



nothing could be better arranged than all the appointments 
of this magnificent ship. The cooks' and stewards' depart- 
ments are equally well managed. The second steward, 
William Phillips, was our bedroom steward on board 
the ' Sunbeam ' for some months, and went to Cyprus 
with us ; and as Tom had got him his present situation, 
you may be sure he does his best to look after us. His 
chief, Mr. Coe, has also been most kind and attentive, as 
indeed was everyone on board with whom we had anything 
to do. 

Our ship's godmother is a picturesque old castle on the 
banks of the Tweed, founded about the middle of the seventh 
century, by Oswald. It was for many years the stronghold 
of Christianity in the north of England; and derives a 
special interest from its connection with the marriage of 
James IV. and Margaret Tudor, and with the subsequent 
union of England and Scotland. 

The weather had so far mended in the evening that in 
spite of the heavy roll we thought that we would go into the 
saloon and try to have some music. This was a work of 
some time *nd difficulty, the piano being already occupied by 
a young couple going to settle somewhere in the interior of 
Africa, who were trying over duets which they did not in the 
least know how to play : very much to their own satisfaction, 
but somewhat to the annoyance of other passengers, especi- 
ally of those who, seated at a long table, were writing letters 
in readiness for to-morrow's homeward mail. The varied 
expressions and attitudes of the reluctant listeners were quite 
an interesting study. I hope none of the letters were very 
urgent, for on the morrow, sad to relate, we met the 
' Hawarden Castle ' just steaming out of the bay as we 
steamed in, and a week must elapse before the departure of 
the next mail for England. 

Our last night on board. How delicious to think we shall 



LAST NIGHT ON BOARD. 



arrive at Funchal quite early in the morning and see Tom 
and the ' Sunbeam ' again. 




Eoll'd to starboard, roll'd to larboard, 
When the surge was seething free ; 

When the wallowing monster spouted 
His foam fountains in the sea. 




CHAPTER II. 



AKING at 3.30 a.m., on Wednesday, 
October 3, I could just see the De- 
sertas in the distance, through my 
cabin window, and knowing that the 
Captain was aiixious not to remain 
longer than was necessary at Madeira, 
I made haste to get up and collect the 
miserable remains of what one short 
week ago had been such a nice little 
outfit, in readiness to land. It was really 
melancholy to see each article, as it was 
brought in from the drying room and else- 
where, looking more deplorable than the last — 
my writing-pad a series of loose leaves of a 
dusky purple colour, books that had been re- 



24 NBA RING MADEIRA. 

duced to pulp and had now become solid grey cakes ; paper 
and printed matter hopelessly mixed up and impossible 
to read or to write upon ; letters of introduction in the 
same sad condition ; and boots and shoes that had as- 
sumed the most awkward shapes in the process of drying, 
very curious to look at no doubt, but unsuitable for all prac- 
tical purposes. Other articles of wearing apparel appeared 
to be equally ruined, except what had been packed in Silver's 
air-tight cases. These latter I cannot sufficiently praise ; for, 
in spite of their having been floating about in water for a 
considerable period, none of their contents were injured in 
the slightest degree. 

Soon all these misfortunes were forgotten, as we saw 
Funchal, not very far distant, with the ' Sunbeam,' looking 
more beautiful than ever *to my eyes, in a coat, of new 
white paint, lying at anchor in the Bay, near several other 
ships. The engines were slowed ; the anchor dropped ; and 
we saw the ' Sunbeam's ' gig lowered and advancing towards 
us, with Tom steering. He was soon under the stern ; and 
we were able to hold a conversation and compare notes 
as to our respective experiences during the past month. It 
seems that he has had charming weather throughout, and 
that he has thoroughly enjoyed his lonely cruise from Malta 
and Gibraltar. As soon as the health-officer had been on 
board we were greeted by Mr. Hmton, and were surrounded 
by several other friends and people we were glad to see, 
including Mr. Cardwell, the manager of the Santa Clara 
Hotel. The sellers of every kind of Madeira produce also 
flocked on board, and quickly made the decks almost im- 
passable. At 8 a.m. the ' Sunbeam ' dressed ship in honour 
of our arrival, and fired (with considerable difficulty, as I 
afterwards heard) a salute from our two little brass carron- 
ades. One large heterogeneous mass of luggage was trans- 
ferred to the various ' Sunbeam ' and shore boats ; and 



ON BOARD THE 'SUNBEAM.' 



25 



after an early breakfast Tom went the round of the ship with 
Captain Winchester, while we said good-bye to all our kind 
friends on board. 

In a brief space of time we found ourselves once more on 
the deck of the yacht, greeting many old friends and making 
acquaintance with the new hands, whom we hope to know 
better before many weeks are over. Soon afterwards we heard 
the farewell bell ring, and then the anchor being weighed, 
on board the steamer. As she left the roadstead, she passed 
close under 
the stern, the 

band on the %>H^ ^ .- 

poop playing, 
and every 
soul on board, ■ 
judging by 
the number, 
cheering and 
waving hats, 
caps, and 

handkerchiefs. 
It was a kind 
thought and a 
graceful com- good-bye! 

pliment : a 

pretty way of bidding us farewell which was much appre- 
ciated by us all. I suppose that the weather had kept most 
of the passengers below during the voyage, for I had never 
seen a twentieth part of them before, close companions as 
we must have been for a week. 

We lost no time, you may be sure, in making a general 
inspection of the ' Sunbeam,' which we found in the most 
perfect order, looking delightfully bright, fresh, and home- 
like after our recent voyage. 




26 AN EMIGRANT SHIP. 



From the yacht we could see an emigrant ship, bound for 
Australia, which had put in here to renew her water-supply. 
She had had a very rough and prolonged passage from Scot- 
land, and the poor emigrants had suffered great discomfort. 
The captain had appealed to the Consul, who, in his turn, had 
appealed to Tom and Mr. Humphreys, as holding master's 
certificates, to hold a formal enquiry into the state of the 
water-tanks, the contents of which were condemned as unfit 
for consumption. 

Tom thought I should be interested to see the vessel, and 
we therefore boarded her on our way to the shore from the 
' Sunbeam.' Our approach evidently created great excite- 
ment, and directly we drew near we were received with ringing 
cheers and waving of handkerchiefs. The emigrants appeared 
to be greatly interested in the children, and would all have 
shaken hands with us if they could. One man clapped Tom 
hard on the shoulder, and said, 'Well, sir, you have got the 
Missus out safe, and the wee bairns ; God bless them and you 
too!' 

I went into every hole and corner of the ship with the 
doctor, including the hospital, where one dear little child was 
lying, looking dreadfully ill, but where two new-born babies 
and their mothers seemed very bonny. The emigrants, as a 
rule, appeared to be of a respectable class ; most of them 
being married, and having large families of children. There 
were also many domestic servants going out to make their 
way at the antipodes. ' Sir Koger ' caused great amusement 
on board, especially among the children, for whose benefit he 
was put through some of his tricks. 

As we said good-bye, with many a hearty hand-shake and 
exchange of good wishes, and went down the ladder again, 
deafening cheers were raised, which continued as long as we 
were in sight. Poor things ! I felt that we had not done much 
to deserve such a display of enthusiasm, and wished sincerely 



LANDING IN A 'LUMP' OF A SEA. -lj 



that it had been possible to do more to relieve what I fear 
must almost inevitably be the misery and discomfort of their 
long voyage. It is to be hoped, however, that they may be 
better favoured than hitherto in the matter of weather, and 
that the renewed water-supply may be more satisfactory than 
the first. 

From the emigrant ship it was quite a hard pull to the 
shore, for the North-east Trades were blowing hard, and 
there was quite a heavy little ' lump ' of a sea on. Half-way 
we had all to be transferred to two of the island boats, in 
which to go through the surf. The natives manage the land- 
ing very cleverly : turning the boat round with her bow 
outwards, and keeping her steady till a large wave comes, 
on the very crest of which they run her ashore stern fore- 
most. On the beach rollers are placed to receive her, and 
many willing hands are ready to pull her up the steep, 
shelving shore, high and dry, before the next wave can beat 
over her. Once landed, we were surrounded by people 
and carried off along the stony beach, and put into one 
of the quaint bullock carts, which are the only kind of — I 



cannot say wheeled carriage, inasmuch as they move on 
runners, as you will see — but the only kind of vehicle at all 
approaching our idea of a carriage to be met with in the 



2 8 ON SHORE AT MADEIRA. 



island. There are, however, many other conveyances of all 
kinds, of which more hereafter. The long-horned, large- 
eyed, patient-looking oxen, with two men going in front, 
carrying oiled cloths or cactus leaves, which they put under 
the runners to make the stones more slippery, dragged us 
up the fine shady old avenue of plane trees leading to the 
Grande Place, or Praca, where everybody walks and talks 
and gossips, and where the band plays two or three times 
a week. The old familiar, narrow, steep streets looked 
just as they had done in 1876, with their whitewashed 
walls, over which fragrant jessamine, stephanotis, hoya, 
roses, gorgeous scarlet hibiscus, grey plumbago, and yellow 
allamandas, threw their luxuriant festoons, as if to give a 
faint, dreamy idea of the beauties that may be concealed 
within. 

The distance from the shore to the Santa Clara Hotel is 
about half a mile. The hotel, which had been specially re- 
commended to us, on account of its high and cool situation 
(an all-important consideration at this time of year), is 
charmingly situated in the midst of a pretty garden, and con- 
tains many cool, airy, clean rooms of all kinds. How trim 
they did look, to be sure, after that uncomfortably moist 
steamer ! Mr. Eeed, the proprietor, and Mr. Cardwell, the 
manager, and his wife (the latter of whom have both been 
servants in English families, and therefore know exactly what 
one requires), spare no pains, as we afterwards found, to insure 
the comfort of their guests. The table is excellent, the charges 
not extravagant, and altogether we had every reason to be 
satisfied and pleased during our stay. Mr. Cardwell took 
charge of our luggage on board the steamer ; and though Mr. 
Eeed, I am afraid, had a great deal of trouble at the Custom 
House, especially as to our saddles, we suffered none, and 
knew nothing more about it until we saw it all in our own 
rooms. The contents were unpacked without delay ; and the 



A MADEIRA GARDEN. 29 

balconies, garden, and every available spot, were speedily 
covered with the sad debris and melancholy remains of our 
outfits. 

In the afternoon we made our first expedition : some of 
the party walking, some in hammocks, the latter carried by 
bearers in the usual costume of white shirts and trousers, 
sailors' hats with gay ribbons, and neck-handkerchiefs, to see 
our old friend, Dr. Grabham, the one English physician here, 
a most accomplished man, brimful of information on every 
possible subject. His garden contains an interesting collection 




THE LOO ROCK 



of plants and trees, all of which he showed us, and some of 
which particularly attracted my attention. Among them was 
the sloth tree (CeFropia), all arms and legs — an old Brazilian 
friend — and the scarlet banana, appropriately named Banana 
cardinalis (Musa coccinea). Surely never was Cardinal half 
so gorgeous as this shrub, with its brilliant scarlet spikes, 
growing beside the quaint orange and purple, crane-headed, 
Strelitzia regince, the flowers of which always look to me so 
like some arrogant farmyard roosters trying their best to get 



3o TREES OF MADEIRA. 



their heads one above another and to have the last crow. 
Dr. Grabham has a great fancy for clocks, of which he 
possesses a beautiful collection. Fifteen are regulated by 
one electrical machine ; and I do not know how many are 
not regulated at all. Then there was a very fine telescope, 
and a variety of other attractive things to be seen, so that 
our visit was somewhat prolonged. I am not sure that the 
best did not come almost at the last— the beautiful lily-of- 
the-valley tree (Clethra arborea) which bears branches of 
white flowers, like five or six sprays of lilies-of-the-valley 
growing from one stalk, and emitting the most delicious scent. 
It also yields a fine white wood, much valued in Madeira, 
though scarcely, if at all, known in England. There was 
also the black Til {Oreodaphne fcetens — so called from its 
horrible smell) or native laurel, which produces a hard, 
black wood like ebony — and some fine specimens of a lovely 
red lily with a gold-coloured tassel in the centre, almost 
filling its beautiful scarlet cup. It is a pity that the 
want of leaves slightly detracts from the otherwise perfect 
beauty of this lily. Not by any means the least among the 
attractions of this delightful garden are the glorious views 
that it commands over the bay beneath, in which we could 
now see the ' Duntrune,' ' Eed Jacket,' and other ships 
lying at anchor, as though in a picture, framed by the 
branches of the splendid old tulip tree, planted by Captain 
Cook. 

The ' Eed Jacket ' was, when first built, supposed to be 
the fastest clipper afloat. Another interesting ship that was 
pointed out to us was the ' Erna,' which, some years ago, 
was abandoned by her crew off the northern coast of Scotland. 
She remained afloat, however, and was seen again later on 
off Queenstown ; after which nothing was heard of her until 
some fortunate fishermen, going further afield — or afloat — 
than usual, to earn their daily bread, found her drifting 



a ' quinta: 



31 



about, and towed her, as a derelict, in to Funchal, where she 
now does duty as a coal hulk. The ' Duntrune ' is a type of 
one of the fast clipper-built ships of the present day ; in 
which category the ' Sunbeam,' though much smaller, may 
also fairly be classed. 

A short descent took us to Mr. Blandy's ' quinta,' in the 
grounds of which we found almost every flower we could think 
of, in the fullest bloom and in the greatest profusion : rare 
ferns growing as thickly as weeds, and all the trellises covered 
with stephanotis, hoya, roses, and heliotrope, diffusing their 
sweetest fragrance on the evening air. There are shady walks 
all about the garden, and a capital tennis court of concrete, 
close by a magnificent Bella- Sombra tree, the huge roots of 
which have forced themselves above the ground, while its 
branches grow in a perpendicular direction, looking as if they 
would soon take root downwards and make a vast tent, like 
one of those Indian fig or banyan trees, under which it is said 
that an army could encamp. 

But it was now growing rapidly 
dark ; so we had to tear ourselves 
reluctantly away and descend to 
the hotel, where, after a delicious 
evening on the verandah, we were 
glad to enjoj' the luxury of a 
steady bed that does not pitch its 
occupant out unexpectedly, and 
the still greater comfort of not 
being obliged to wear sea boots, or 
to run the risk of stepping into 
a gentle ' wash ' of six or eight 
inches of sea water. 

Perhaps, before proceeding further with the description of 
our stay in Madeira, it may not be out of place to say a few 
words as to the history of the island. 




PEASANT NEAR FUNCHAL 



32 . HISTORY OF MADEIRA. 

Mentioned as the Purple or Mauritanian Islands by 
Pliny, and supposed to have been colonised by the Phoeni- 
cians, nothing really authentic was known of the place until 
the time of the famous all-discovering navigator Prince Henry 
of Portugal. 

An expedition despatched by him in 141 8 discovered 
Porto Santo, and, a year after, the island which was called 
Madeira, from the immense amount of wood and forests 
which it contained. Tradition, however, relates that, nearly 
a hundred years before, in 1336, an English nobleman, 
Eobert Machim by name, fell in love with Anna d'Arphet, 
a young lady of higher rank, who returned his affection, but 
whose parents would not hear of their marriage. The young 
couple determined to escape from Bristol to France. They 
chartered a small vessel ; encountered rough weather ; were 
driven about by gales ; and, after fourteen days' tossing about, 
were cast ashore on the Island of Madeira, at a place subse- 
quently called Machico, to commemorate the event. The 
poor lady succumbed to the hardships of the voyage : her 
husband died a few days afterwards, and they were both 
buried at Machico, where their companions built a small 
church to the memory of the ill-starred pair. A large cedar- 
wood cross was also erected a few miles further on at the 
place now called Santa Cruz. Some of the crew escaped to 
the coast of Africa, only 400 miles distant, where they met a 
Portuguese pilot, who subsequently told the story to his royal 
master, Prince Henry, and Zargo was in consequence sent on 
a voyage of investigation. He unfortunately made use of 
his discovery of the Island of Madeira to burn much of the 
wood and destroy the splendid forests, some historians assert- 
ing that the fires continued to burn for seven years. Zargo 
returned to Portugal ; and the following year he returned to 
take possession of the country, which was entirely unin- 
habited. He erected the existing church at Machico, using 



FUNCHAL. 33 



as part of his materials the wood of the tree under which 
Robert Machmi and his wife were originally buried. 

Perestrello, one of the first of the explorers who landed at 
Porto Santo, had an only daughter, who married Christopher 
Columbus, and who appears to have shown her husband 
various' charts and memoranda relating to her father's 
numerous voyages in the Atlantic. These documents first 
inspired the great navigator with the idea of searching for a 
New World. Columbus lived for many years at Porto Santo, 
paying occasional visits to Madeira and Lisbon in the inter- 
vals of his long voyages. 

In 1508 Funchal was made a city; in 15 14 a bishopric; 
in 1539 an archbishopric. Then, in 1547, it was reduced to 
a bishopric again, and the Archiepiscopal see was removed to 
Goa, in India. In 1566 the Island was attacked by a band of 
French marauders, who landed from eight galleons, doing 
much damage, carrying off everything they could lay hands 
on, and, for a time, seriously checking the prosperity of the 
inhabitants. In 1580, when Portugal became subject to 
Spain, Madeira shared the fate of the mother country, until 
1640, when Portuguese rule was again restored. In 1768, 
Captain Cook, on his way round the world in the 'Endeavour,' 
battered the fort on the Loo rock, with the assistance of a 
British frigate, as a reprisal for some insult to the British 
flag. The Government of the day discountenanced the pub- 
lication of this not very creditable incident, which is therefore 
not recorded in Hawksworth's account of Cook's first voyage. 
In 1773, the Marquis de Pombal, the Portuguese minister, 
terrified by the number of slaves in Portugal, promulgated a 
decree ordering the suppression of slavery, which was pub- 
lished at Madeira in 1775. In 180 1 the British Government, 
as allies of Portugal, sent an army under Colonel Clinton, 
to occupy the Island till after the Peace of Amiens, when 
Madeira was evacuated . by our troops. In 1807 it was 

D 



34 



FUNCHAL. 



again seized by a British force under General Beresford, 
and the inhabitants were made to swear fealty to King George 
III. The island was nominally given up in the following 
April, but continued to be garrisoned by English troops till 
the conclusion of the general peace in 1 8 14. In 1 826 Madeira, 
like Portugal, was divided against herself by the Miguelite 
troubles; but when in 1853 poor Dona Maria's authority was 
definitively established, things in the island assumed a more 
peaceable footing. Her untimely death was followed by the 
regency of her husband, until the coining of age and acces- 
sion to the throne of her son, Dom Pedro ; which event was 
celebrated with great rejoicings at Funchal in 1855. Since 
then everything has been quiet and peaceful. Long may it 
continue so ! 




THE 'ENDEAVOUR' 



& ^kD£JR/l a 




SOCCORRIDOS 



CHAPTEE III. 

MADEIRA. 

A land of streams ! Some like a downward smoke, 
Slow dropping veils of thinnest lawn, did go ; 
And some through wavering lights and shadows broke, 
Kolling a slumbrous sheet of foam below. 

Thursday, October 4th. 

WE were to have started for Cabo Girao (so named 
because Zargo and his companions are said to have 
turned back there) at ten o'clock this morning; but the 
delay in passing our saddles through the Custom House 
made it much later before we got away ; and our eleven im- 

i) 2 



36 RIBIERO DOS SOCCORRIDOS. 



patient steeds were pawing the ground for a long time in front 
of the hotel while we waited within. They were all nice little 
horses, very fresh after a summer's rest. Such a clatter and 
caracoling they made on the hard paved streets, as we at 
last set forth on our expedition, each with an attendant bur- 
riquiero, or groom ! It was not long before we were clear of 
the town and got on to a capital soft road, under shady 
trees, where we enjoyed a good gallop. Some of the horses 
were in the highest spirits, and performed all manner of 
antics, kicking and curvetting about at random. The sea 
was close on our left ; and the views across it were splendid : 
especially in the direction of the Gorgulho Fort and Praya 
Formosa. Between the two there is a curious hole in the 
rock, , through which the sea is visible ; and in stormy weather 
the waves are driven upwards with great violence in a column 
of water and spray. 

The good road was on far too grand a scale to last long. 
It came to an ignominious termination at a bridge over the 
Bibiero dos Soccorridos, so called from the fact that two of 
Zargo's companions were nearly drowned but were happily 
rescued here. The river rises in the mountains of the Grand 
Curral ; and the view upwards from the bridge is strikingly 
fine. Dana says that ' one of the greatest peculiarities of the 
mountain scenery of Madeira consists in the jagged outlines 
of the ridges, the rude towers and needles of rock that charac- 
terise the higher peaks as well as the lower elevations, and 
the deep precipitous gorges which intersect the mountains 
almost to their bases.' The Bibiero dos Soccorridos was once 
a. vast stream, on the broad bosom of which the trunks of noble 
trees from the pine forests above were floated down to the 
coast. The destruction of the forests, unfortunately, involved 
the impoverishment of the river ; and now nothing remains 
but a few comparatively insignificant trees and a rapid moun- 
tain torrent. 




30 Longitude 17° We 



New York -.Henry Holt A Co. 



CAMARA DO LOBOS. 



37 



At this point our ' grand road ' having come to an end, by 
very precipitous paved mountain-paths, sometimes ascending 
and sometimes descending, we reached the little fishing-village 
of Camara do Lobos (or 'place of seals'). Here it was that 
we had embarked in 1876 after our expedition up the Grand 
Curral. To-day we rested in the shady market-place for a 
short time to enable men, horses, and dogs to recruit their 
strength before making the long steep ascent that lay before 
them. It was, indeed, a fearful gradient, and how the eleven 
plucky little horses managed to take us all up, puzzles me ; 
for the weight of some members of the party was considerable. 




There was an 
end for a" time to 
their caracoling. As we rose 
higher and .higher, the cha- 
racter of the vegetation began 

to change entirely and to lose its tropical character. Not far 
from a spot where the narrowness of the path compelled us 



PICNIC AT CAPE GIRAO 



38 



A MOUNTAIN EXPEDITION. 



to dismount, we overtook two men 
who were carrying our lunch on their 
heads in the picturesque flat-shaped 
baskets of the country. It looked a 
fearfully heavy load to be conveyed 
up these steep hills in such a manner ; 
but the bearers assured us in answer 
to our sympathising inquiries that it 
was quite light, and that they were 
accustomed to carry 250 or even as 
much as 300 pounds weight each 
in a similar manner. At the tiny 
hamlet where we left our horses the 
scenery completely changed, and be- 
came quite Scotch in character, but 
with little Fijian-looking huts perched 
among furze, broom, fir-trees, and 
pines. From these primitive dwelling- 
places issued a horde of pertinacious 
beggars, who greatly interfered with 
the pleasure of our long but 
delightful walk round one head- 
land, through the pine forests, 
to the threshing-floor at Cabo 
Girao, where we rested and 
lunched, with a view on 
either side such as 
no words could 
describe. An odd 
place, you will 
think, for a 
threshing - floor ; . 
but corn only 
grows on the tops 



hWk 




MOUNTAIN HUTS 



A PRECIPITOUS DESCENT. 39 



of the hills in Madeira, and the fields were therefore close at 
hand. 

A few yards further, and we found ourselves at the verge of 
what some have described as ' the most magnificent headland 
in the world,' a straight basaltic wall rising a sheer 2,000 
feet from the sea. For most people, the only way really to 
enjoy the glorious prospect and to realise its stupendous 
character as seen from this dizzy height is to lie down 
flat and put their heads over the edge of the cliff, and 
there luxuriate to their heart's content in wonder and amaze- 
ment. A stone thrown down from the top seems to take 
ages, so to speak, to reach the bottom ; large fishing-boats 
on the sea beneath look like flies, and everything else is 
dwarfed and diminished in similar proportion. On such a 
spot Shakespeare's samphire-gatherer recurs naturally to the 
mind, and we feel the life-like truthfulness of his description 
of Dover cliffs. 

At Campanario, about an hour's ride from Cabo Girao, is 
a beautiful chestnut-grove belonging to Count Carvalhal, one 
of the trees of which is the giant of the forest, its girth being 
more than thirty-five feet. There is a door in the trunk ; and 
the hollow within is fitted up as a room, with chairs, tables, 
and other furniture. A friend told me he had often played 
whist and had even slept in this fine old tree. I am sorry we 
had nofr time to go and see it ; but it lay rather out of our 
course. By a much more precipitous but less circuitous 
route, through more groves of Spanish chestnuts, we reached 
the spot where we had left the horses, and quickly remounted. 
It had been cool on the heights ; but as we rapidly descended 
we felt the heat again. The paths, which had seemed steep 
enough to ascend, now assumed the aspect of house-walls ; so 
alarmingly precipitous in fact were they, that several of the 
party declined to ride down, trustworthy as the little horses 
had hitherto proved themselves to be. Personally, I always 



4° 



A CHILD'S FUNERAL. 



prefer being on a horse's back to relying on my own legs 
under similar, or, I might almost say, under any circum- 
stances ; and in the present instance my confidence was 
not misplaced, for I reached the bottom without a single 
stumble. 

After another brief halt at Camara do Lobos, we paid 
a visit to the beach, with its picturesque boats loading and 
unloading ,in the evidently volcanic-made harbour. Then 
another scramble up and down the stony paths brought 
us once more to the bridge and the good road already 
referred to. 

As we were leaving the village we met the funeral of a 
poor little dead child all shrouded in white lace, with its 




CHILD'S FUNERAL 



tiny wax-like hands clasped on its breast : the afternoon sun 
shining on its golden hair. It was being carried on a little- 
bier to its last resting-place by four children, probably its 



GIGANTIC CAMELLIA-TREES. 41 

playmates of yesterday. In these hot climates delay in the 
interment of the dead is obviously inadvisable. Some of these 
days, perhaps, we may realise the faet that the health of the 
living is imperilled by the length of time during which we, 
alone among the nations of Europe, keep above ground the 
remains of those whom we love. 

A sharp canter in the now cool sea-breeze completed 
our excursion, and we re-entered Funchal just before seven 
o'clock. 

Friday, October $th. — After a quiet morning, we started 
at noon, some riding, some in hammocks, through the steep 
streets of the town, mounting fast into the purer cooler air 
on our way to the Palheiro, where Mr. Elwes had invited us 
to lunch. On and on we went, rising higher and higher, 
the views becoming more enchanting at every step, as we 
looked back upon the bay below over the picturesque train 
of hammock-men marching cheerily up the steep ascent. 
Gradually we reached the region of pines and fir-trees, like 
those we had seen yesterday. The Palheiro itself boasts the 
most splendid grove of stone-pines in the island ; besides 
Portugal laurels over forty feet high, and camellia-trees of 
equally gigantic proportions. A story is told of some one 
making an excursion to see these famous camellias and 
returning much disappointed at having failed to discover 
them. He was induced to pay a second visit to the spot, and 
was much surprised, on being told by his friends to look up- 
wards, to find a huge canopy of large scarlet and white 
blossoms, between forty and fifty feet over head. It was 
here that we had our first sight of the pink Belladonna 
lilies, growing in all their glory. These beautiful plants 
are a species of Amaryllis, named by some poetical Italian 
Belladonna, because the tints of red, pink and white are 
so delicately blended in their petals that they are supposed 
to resemble the complexion of a lovely woman. They should 



42 



A PICNIC AMID STONE-PINES. 




not be confounded, as is often the case, with the Atropa 
belladonna, or deadly nightshade. Here they grow like weeds, 

great masses of 
bulbs throwing up 
many stalks with 
clusters of four 
or five large pink 
flowers on each. 
Pushing their way 
up from among 
the brown fir- 
spines, beneath 
the shade of a 
magnificent grove 
of stone-pines, they reminded me somewhat of the daffodils 
in an English park, and produced an effect which struck our 
unaccustomed eyes as most remarkable. Our picnic table was 
decorated with these lilies, displayed in two large dark-blue 
china bowls, and with an abundance of many-hued fruits, 
which are in plenty here just now, to say nothing of more 
substantial fare, which, spread on the white cloth, formed a 
highly picturesque and not at all an unpleasant spectacle, after 
our long climb. Mr. Elwes had invited some of our old friends 
to meet us ; and we were soon seated in little groups, chatting 
away with our backs against the pine-trees, and discussing 
the good things provided for us ; occasionally pausing in that 
interesting occupation to look upwards at the green, needle- 
covered branches, interlaced above our heads against the dark 
blue sky ; or far ahead, where the spaces between the moss- 
covered stems afforded glimpses of the sea, with the Desertas 
and Porto Santo in one direction and the Bay of Funchal, 
with its varied shipping, in another. 

From the Palheiro we went across to the Little Curral or 
Curral dos Eomeiros, a replica, on a somewhat smaller scale, 



MOUNT CHURCH. 43 



of the Grand Curral, or Curral das Freiras. The scenery is 
splendid, consisting of abrupt precipices, richly wooded hills 
and crags, rushing waters, and a paradise of ferns and mosses. 
To-day, owing to the rain, the road was bad ; and in spite of 
the cleverness and agility of our bearers, we were a long time 
getting to the Mount Church. This is usually the first object 
of interest that every visitor to the island is taken to see : 
its two white towers being visible from every part of the city 
of Funchal. It is a church much venerated by the islanders ; 
and to Nossa Senhora do Monte are attributed many bene- 
ficent miracles. Once in particular, when the island was 
threatened with famine, a general procession of the inhabitants 
repaired to the Mount and prostrated themselves in prayer 
before the altar. The next day a ship laden with grain arrived 
in the harbour ; while the image of the Virgin in the church 
was found to be dripping with moisture. Some people went 
so far as to say they had seen the Madonna gracefully swim- 
ming ahead of the ship, towing her in with a cable between 
her teeth, there being no breeze blowing at the time. As a 
rule there is not much to see in the Mount Church ; but it 
happened this morning that an interesting ' function ' was 
being solemnised in one of the side chapels. 

Not far from the church is the Monte Quinta, one of the 
most delightful in all Madeira, the residence of Mr. Cossart. 
Not only are the vegetation by which it is surrounded rare 
and beautiful and the grounds tastefully laid out, but a 
running stream of water on the very summit of this high 
hill has been diverted into ponds and lakes, on which float 
quite a flotilla of small craft. The effect of the setting sun 
reflected in these miniature pools, and of the view beyond 
them over the Bay of Funchal to Cabo Girao and the bound- 
less ocean, is nobly impressive. Another open-air entertain- 
ment had here been hospitably provided for us. The tea, 
fruit, and cakes on the small tables, scattered about under the 



44 



A CARRO RIDE. 



trees and illumined after the sun had gone down by numerous 
little lamps, looked quite as picturesque as our mid- day picnic 
had done. The house itself is charming, but in this soft 

climate one 
thinks perhaps 
less about the 
interior of one's 
habitation than 
of the grounds 
attached to it. 
From the 
Mount we de- 
scended into 
Funchal in an- 
other variety 
of Madeira con- 
veyance — the 
carro, or run- 
ning-sledge. In 
these sledges, 
made of basket 
work, fixed on 
runners, and skilfully guided by one or two men, you glide 
down the steep paved hill into Funchal in a very short time. 
I was anxious that our friends' first experience of this mode of 
conveyance should be gained in the dark ; for the sensation 
of rushing through the balmy evening air, apparently down a 
steep place into the sea, is to me enchanting ; though people 
afflicted with ' nerves ' might not altogether appreciate the 
enchantment. You cannot see whither you are going; and 
it seems to be a vast abyss of obscurity into which you are 
plunging. Sometimes the road so completely overhangs the 
town' of Funchal that it quite disappears from view, and you 
only see beneath you the bay, with the twinkling lights of the 




A HAPPY TRIO 



AN UNPLEASANT POSSIBILITY. 



45 



ships at anchor. By day, or in fact at any time, a carro ride 
is full of enjoyment; but, if possible, by all means let your 
first expedition be made in the dark. 

On the present occasion the fascinating amusement unfor- 
tunately made us rather late for dinner ; for we found Miss 
Blandy already waiting for us ; and her father arrived almost 
as soon as we did. Tom, as usual, went off after dinner to 
sleep on board the yacht, in case anything should go wrong in 
the night. I and the children accompanied him to-night, so 
as to be ready for our early start for Babacal in the morning. 

There are no real harbours in Madeira — only open road- 
steads ; so that if a gale springs up there is nothing for it but 
to up anchor and put to sea. The unpleasant possibility that 
the wind might change, and 
that the yacht might have to 
make a run for it suddenly at 
any time, was therefore always 
present to our minds during 
our stay in the island. 

Saturday, October 6. — There 
seemed to be a general impres- 
sion in the minds of those to 
whom we spoke on the subject 
that our proposed expedition of 
to-day to Babacal and back 
was rather a formidable un- 
dertaking. The waiter of the 
hotel gravely assured me that 
it was impossible to accomplish 
the journey in less than, two or 
more — probably three — days. 




PREPARED EOR THE WORST 



Not knowing much about the 



matter ourselves, it was useless to dispute this opinion ; and 
we accordingly gave way to what appeared to us a somewhat 



46 HAMMOCK-BEARERS. 

unreasonable prejudice in favour of a very early start. Forty 
hammock-men with twelve hammocks arrived on board at 
3 a.m. to a moment, creeping about the deck like mice, for 
fear they should disturb us. Their hats were all tied on 
firmly with handkerchiefs, as if they expected to encounter 
a terrific gale directly they set foot on the yacht. It must 
therefore have been with a great sense of relief that, finding 
there was absolutely not a breath of wind blowing, they untied 
their handkerchiefs again, curled themselves up under the 
bulwarks, and went fast asleep. Soon after five, with com- 
mendable punctuality, our party of friends from the shore 
arrived ; and immediately after they had embarked we got up 
steam and proceeded along the beautiful coast, past Camara 
do Lobos and Cabo Girao, to Calheta. 

As soon as we were fairly under way I caused to be served 
out from the forecastle to each of the hammock-bearers a 
large cup of hot coffee, two or three biscuits, and, last, but 
not by any means least in their estimation I think, a small 
glass of spirits. This unexpected meal was a pleasant surprise 
to them, and one which they much appreciated. Even more 
were they delighted by being taken all round the yacht and 
shown the various cabins and the objects of interest brought 
from all parts of the world. I did my best to. explain all 
about them in bad Spanish, which I hoped might pass muster 
as inferior Portuguese, especially as I managed to introduce 
a few words of the latter language. Their gratitude for the 
very small amount of trouble which I had taken was un- 
bounded : their thanks in some cases being quite touchingly 
expressed : That ' Nossa Senhora may bless the lady and all 
belonging to her ! ' that ' all the lady's shadow falls on may 
prosper ! ' and so forth. 

We reached the pretty little Bay of Calheta at seven, and 
at once embarked in native boats for the shore. The same 
system of landing is used here as at Funchal ; but the beach 



LANDING AT CALHETA. 



47 




being steeper, the boulders bigger, and the breakers larger, 
more care and caution have to be exercised ; and the ope- 
ration takes 
more time. 
A man swam 
out with a 

rope in his ^ 

teeth ; and I 
got hold of 
it, while he 
propped him- 
self against 
the side of the 
boat, fastened 
the rope, and 
after waiting 
what appeared 

to be a considerable interval for a suitable opportunity, 
towed us gently in on the crest of a very big wave, to the 
wooden rollers on the beach, just as the beachmen had 
done at Funchal. It was very hot on landing; but we at 
once got into our hammocks and were carried gaily by the 
trotting bearers, upwards always upwards, into a cooler air. 
After about half an hour's steady climb the men stopped 
and rested, close to a picturesque water-mill, the conduit- 
pipe of which was formed by the hollow trunk of a tree. 
This was the first water-mill we had been able to observe 
closely, though such buildings are numerous all over the 
island. A little way further on the sea began to disappear, 
and we got into a region of clouds, which speedily turned 
to rain and - threatened to drench us completely, in spite 
of the fair promise of the morning. We crossed a large 
moor, quite Scotch in appearance, and with watercresses 
growing in the little mountain streams : the only unfamiliar 



4 8 



A LEVADA. 



feature in ' the landscape being the numerous centipedes that 
crawled, and the locusts that jumped, about our feet. Soon 
afterwards another change of scene awaited us. The ex- 
quisitely fern- fringed mouth of what looked like a dark cavern 
in front of us, was really the entrance. to the tunnel which 
pierces the central mountain range, and through which the 
greater part of the water-supply is conveyed in levadas, or 
stone water-courses, from the north side of the island, where 
it is almost always raining, to the south, where comparatively 
little rain falls. Our progress through the tunnel was curiously 
interesting. The ferns of course vanished when we were 
twenty yards from the entrance ; and it became pitch dark, 
except for the glaring smoky light of bunches of twigs dipped 
in some resinous compound, which made those who carried 

these primitive torches 
look singularly wend, 
as they ran along on 
the edge of the levada, 
with its swiftly flowing 
current of clear water 
beneath them. Arrived 
at the other end, what 
a change met our as- 
tonished gaze ! The 
passage through the 
tunnel had been like 
the touch of a magi- 
cian's wand. From 
the barren moor, we 
had emerged into a 
sort of semi-tropical 
Killarney, rain and all, 
with abrupt precipices and tree-clothed crags on all sides, 
and ferns and mosses everywhere. I could have spent the 




m<*^ri^ 



WATER-MILL 



A SEMI-TROPICAL KILLARNEY. 



49 



whole day in any one spot examining and collecting the 
mosses and ferns with pleasure and profit. The heaths (Erica), 




were twenty or thirty feet high, and seven or eight feet in 
circumference, and there were innumerable laurustinus, Por- 
tugal laurels, daphnes, lily-of-the-valley trees, and tils, clothed 
from head to foot in a fairy-like drapery of hare's-foot fern. 
And the walls of the levadas ; what rare studies of nature 
they offered ! One forgot all sense of danger in gazing on 
the varied loveliness of the scene ; although the heavy rain 
marred to some extent our perfect enjoyment of the spectacle. 
Without the downpour, however, we should have lost the 
grand effects of the mists rolling up the valley, sometimes 
completely hiding, oftener only partially enshrouding, the 
mountain tops. The path along the levada, picturesque though 
it otherwise w T as, was narrow and slippery, having only a width 
of one brick for the men to walk on, with often a sheer preci- 
pice on one side, hundreds of feet deep, over which the ham- 
mock hung perilously wdien the bearers turned a sharp corner. 
Sir Eoger was in the highest possible spirits ; and having once 
tumbled off the narrow one-brick path of duty into the levada, 
where he had a nice swim in the beautiful clear water, he 
must needs gambol about to dry himself and tumble over on 
the other side, luckily where the precipice was not very 



So 



THE COMMISSIONERS HOUSE. 



steep. In his descent he stuck first in a great heath-tree, 
then in a -til-tree, then in some creepers, and so on; until, 
quite unhurt, though uttering piteous cries for help, he 
landed on his feet at the bottom, and managed with many 
joyous barks to find his way up by the bank a little 
further on. 

The rain seemed to fall more and more heavily ; and we 
were not sorry to find the house of one of the Commissioners 
of Works (to whom we had a letter of introduction) come 
in sight, on the other side of the steep ravine, up a sharp 
ascent. We were hospitably received by our host ; our drenched 
clothes were taken to be dried, and a room was given to us in 
which to spread our lunch. Some cups of Silver's excellent 
preserved soups, which carry their own fuel attached to each 
tin and require nothing but the ap- 
plication of a match, were much 
appreciated ; for it was quite cold 
up here. Afterwards the bulk of 
the party decided to return at once ; 
but four of our number preferred, 
in spite of the deplorable weather, 
to go on to see the Vinte-cinco 
Fontes, or Twenty-five Fountains. 
We accordingly borrowed some 
blankets of the good-natured 
manager, in which we rolled 
ourselves, leaving our still wet 
clothes to finish drying, and, , 
accompanied by our 
host, proceeded down 
one of the most 
beautiful, but at the 
same time the very 
worst, roads it has 




VINTE-CINCO FONTES. 



ever been my fortune to travel. In places it had been com- 
pletely washed away by the rain ; and how ever our bearers 

managed to carry us along with- 
out letting us roll over the side of 
the precipice is a mystery to me. 
Sometimes, too, they had to walk 
up to their knees in water, in the 
levada itself. I never thought of 
danger at the time, there was so 
much to distract my attention, 
though I suppose it was really 
a somewhat hazardous expedi- 
tion ; but the beauty of the 
scenery atoned for all the peril 
incurred. The Twenty - five 
Fountains (which quite realise 
the idea which we had formed 
of them from description) con- 
sist in reality of one high 
waterfall, tumbling over a 
perpendicular precipice, and 
in places almost hidden by 
the luxuriant growth of 
tree and other ferns, amid 
which little water-spouts 
spurt and jet out in every 
direction. I counted 
thirty instead of twenty- 
five ' fountains ' ; and 
there were numberless small ones besides. One could 
almost have believed it to be as artificial as the grandes eaux 
at Versailles ; but then came the reassuring consciousness 
that it was too beautiful to be anything but Dame Nature's 
handiwork. What would it have been, I wondered, on a 




DESCENT FROM RABACAL. 



warm, bright, sunny day '? As it was, I felt almost as though 
the scene were too enchanting to be real — that I was in 
a dream, and should presently see fairy elves start from 
under every fern and begin their gambols by the bank 
of the dark deep silent pool, close to which was a cave that 
would have formed a fit resting-place for the Queen of the 
Fairies herself : — the entrance fringed and the roof canopied 
with hare's-foot fern, polystichum, and other ferns, rare to 
us ; the floor a carpet of soft springy hymenophijllum and 
trichomanes of various sorts. 

From this spot we went along another levada to the 
great Eisco fountain, a straight waterfall, rushing over a 
sheer precipice, whence a steep, almost perpendicular climb, 
took us again to the house. We packed up the remains 
of the lunch ; and, still enveloped in the welcome blankets 
which the manager insisted on our taking with us — for it 
was really cold and we were very wet — we made a start down- 
wards by another route and through a different tunnel in the 
rock. 

Directly we emerged on the south side, the weather and 
temperature completely changed ; the rain had ceased ; the 
sun was shining brightly ; and we were only too glad to get 
rid of all the wraps for which we had been so thankful a short 
hour ago. 

The extent to which the temperature varies as you mount 
or descend a few hundred feet, especially if you get at all 
to the northward of the central range of mountains, makes 
long excursions in Madeira somewhat dangerous for invalids, 
unless provided with plenty of warm coverings. I suppose in 
the present instance there must have been twice in the course 
of our upward and downward journey a difference of from 
20 to 25 degrees. Our bearers descended at a tremendous 
pace ; and in an hour and twenty-five minutes from the time 
of leaving the refuge at Eabacal we were on board the 



BIRTH DA Y PRESENTS. 



53 



boat on our way to the yacht, and were soon after steaming 
away towards Funchal. The hammock-men had served 
out to them 
the good tea 
which they 




thoroughly deserved, and certainly appreciated ; and when 
they left the ship, directly we arrived at our destination, they 
invoked many blessings on our heads, in the most charming 
old-fashioned-sounding phraseology. 

Sunday, October 7. — My birthday. Arriving at the hotel, I 
found a table covered with letters and slips of paper bearing 
good wishes, and with a charming little selection of offerings, 
principally of native manufacture, and mostly purchased in 
the market the same morning. Among them was an orna- 
mental and convenient picnic-basket, arranged in three tiers, 
from Muhie ; two basket-work models of a hammock and a 
sledge from Baby, a pretty hat- shaped basket full of scarlet 
hibiscus and white datura, a curiously shaped bottle-gourd for 
carrying water, a charming little sketch from Mr. Pritchett, 
and numberless bouquets. 



54 



ENGLISH CHURCH. 



We went to the English church, where Mr. Addison offici- 
ates ; a curious building, Ionic in style, and on the whole 
not ugly ; but rather more like a theatre than a church : a 
resemblance no doubt due to the fact that in 1810, when 
the edifice was begun, the Portuguese Government would not 
allow any building of ecclesiastical form to be erected in 
the king's dominions, except for the purposes of Bonian 
Catholic worship. The church was built partly b}^ volun- 
tary subscriptions, and partly by means of a tax levied by 
the English merchants themselves on every pipe of their 
wine that left' the port. It cost 10,000?., which seems an 
almost incredibly large sum for such an edifice, and was not 
finished (I suppose in consequence of the enormous expense) 
until 1822. The service was well conducted ; the organ 
good ;. but the congregation scanty. In the afternoon I am 
afraid that it must generally be smaller still ; for the clergy- 
man announced 
that he should 
have to give up 
the afternoon 
services for the 
present, until he 
could depend on 
the attendance 
of a sufficient 
number to form 
a congregation. 
I could not help 
thinking of the 
old fort story, possibly 

apocryphal, of 
Dean Swift, in a country church in Ireland, where a congre- 
gation had wholly failed to put in an appearance, addressing 
the clerk beneath him as ' Dearly beloved Peter.' From the 




isspi 






C A MACHO. 55 

church we went to the cemetery. It is somewhat crowded; 
but on the whole is well kept. Some of the graves were 
simply covered with wreaths and shoots and twining tendrils 
of stephanotis, with its bright shining leaves and clusters of 
pure white fragrant flowers, or the equally sweet and beau- 
tiful clusters of thick pink fleshy blooms of the Hoy a carnosa. 
Leaving the cemetery, we started for Camacho, to lunch with 
the Hintons. Upward and upward we went, along the same 
steep road that we had travelled over yesterday ; past the 
Palheiro, and still ' excelsior,' till we got among the clouds 
and encountered something disagreeably suggestive of a 
deluge of rain. Consequently, when we arrived at the house 
of our hosts, we were literally dripping and half-drowned, 
and only too glad to see a bright blazing lire on the hearth : 
a sight that would have been anything but agreeable in 
Funchal. 

In the afternoon, notwithstanding the still pouring rain, we 
paddled out under umbrellas to admire the view, but more 
especially to see the glorious clumps of belladonna lilies 
which grow in such profusion as to give quite a roseate colour 
to the landscape. Beautiful as they are in the distance, they 
are still- more so when closely examined : their deep chocolate- 
hued stems and buds graduating to dark, then pale crimson, 
pink, and white, in the most exquisite shades of colour. 
Delicate and fragile as they look, they have yet plenty of 
' persistent force ' and ' determined strength ' of their own ; 
many of them having gently pushed their soft brown buds 
and pink flowers through the hard paved road, only to be 
trampled down by the feet of the hammock-men and the 
hoofs of the horses. 

Miss Taylor, an old resident in Madeira, who has kindly 
given us much useful information, came in to four o'clock 
tea, with several other friends ; and soon afterwards we 
started on our return journey by a totally different but 



5& 



ENGLISH CHURCH. 



equally picturesque route, by Aguas Mansas, Pico d' Abobora, 
and Pico da Silva, to Caminho do Meio, where we met the 
' carros' and had a rapid run down the Rocket road into 
Funchal. 





CHAPTEE IV. 



MADE IB A. 



Monday, October 8th. 

THE weather for the last few days has been unfavourable 
for expeditions to the northern side of the island; but 
our time being limited, we decided that we must go to-day 
or not at all. 

At four o'clock this morning the aspect of matters verged 
on the hopeless. Heavy black clouds shrouded the hills to 
the northward ; and the sailors predicted a thorough wet day. 
Still, provided with plenty of rugs and mackintoshes, with 
which to line and cover the hammocks, we determined to 
make a start. There was some delay about the baggage- 
mules ; but we managed to get away from the hotel soon 
after seven o'clock — the whole party being in hammocks on 
this occasion — and were carried up the steep streets till we 

F 



QUINTA DAVIS. 



met Dr. Grabham, who had offered to accompany us during 
the first part of our journey, in order to show us all the 
points of interest by the way. 

Our first halt was made at the Quinta Davis, which is 
often occupied as a winter residence,, and which must be a 
charming place to live in. The shrubs, trees, and flowers 
of all kinds, especially the camellias, are magnificent. The 
grounds also contain some fine cork-trees, besides a quaint 
old dragon-tree, and many other interesting objects. But 
what caught my eye at once, and was to my mind by far the 
most beautiful thing in the garden, was a brilliant red tac- 

sonia, that had 
• climbed up an 
evergreen oak 
to the height 
of about forty 
feet, whence its 
luxuriant green 
tendrils and 
buds and scar- 
let flowers hung 
down till they 
mingled with 
the creamy 
white feathery 
plumes of a 
clump of giant 
pampas grass, 
eighteen feet 
high, spread- 
ing gracefully, 
like a foun- 
tain, over the 
lawn. 




POIZO PEAK. 



59 



m 




Shortly after 
leaving the Quinta 
we crossed a kind 
of moorland, and 
climbed higher and 
higher, until as usual 
we got among the 
rain-clouds, where, 
but for our coverings, 
we should at orice 
have been drenched 
by the violence of 
an almost tropical shower 
As it was, the rain reduced - : 

our poor bearers, in their thin 
clothing, to the similitude of drowned 
rate, and even partially penetrated the 
numerous wraps and coverings with which 
we had provided ourselves. When we reached 
the Poizo peak, the height of which is vari- capitao 

ously estimated at from 4,000 to 4,500 feet, 
we decided to take advantage of the shelter afforded by 
a spacious room, with an enormous fire-place in it, to rest, 
dry and refresh ourselves. It was only eleven o'clock; but 
we thought that the w r eather might perhaps show some 
signs of improvement during the interval. The room soon 
assumed a bright and cheerful aspect, greatly enhanced by 
the now blazing fire, which two peasants fed lavishly with 
huge faggots of heath and whortleberry. At noon the rain 
ceased, the sun burst forth, and we had a delightful ride 
down the northern valley. Capitao, a majestic rock, the 
Pico d'Assounna, and Pico Euivo, were dimly visible through 
fine driving clouds of mist ; while at our feet, and on 
every side, the vegetation was in glorious variety. The 

f2 



6o 



RIBIERO FRIO. 




til-trees, gracefully 
draped in ferns, 
specially com- 

manded admiration. At one spot, where a tiny waterfall 
found its way into the river be- 
neath, the figure of a peasant- 
woman wearing a bright- coloured 
petticoat and handkerchief, over 
a white body, 
half hidden 




BALCAO. 



61 



among taro leaves, sugar-canes and ferns of all sorts, and 
busily engaged in washing clothes, made quite a pretty little 
picture . 

A short distance further on we came to the Eibiero Frio, 
where we had intended to lunch; but there was no shelter, 
and we therefore only rested long enough to observe another 



of the picturesque 
country. On the 
bridge crossing 
comfortably seated 
inch wide door- 
with shut door, 
of two or three 
cernedly munch- 
A wretched 
men of hu- 
was, though 
formed, and 
quite bright 
with himself, 
soul was in 
could almost 
gined that 
the sole in- 
the tiny vil- 
From the 
a short but 




mills of the 
other side of the 
the stream, and 
on the eight - 
step of a cottage 
was an urchin 
years, uncoil- 
ing a banana, 
little speci- 
nianity he 
not at all de- 
apparently 
and satisfied 
Not another 
sight ; and I 
have ima- 
the brat was 
habitant of 
lage. 

Eibiero Frio 
almost per- 



pendicular scramble (the rocks up which General Wolfe's 
grenadiers marched at Quebec were, you will remember, 
' quite perpendicular ') brought us to the Balcao, whence 
we had a much nearer and more splendid view of the 
mountain peaks already named : Pico Euivo standing out 
boldly through the clouds of driving mist, now disclosing, 
now concealing entirely its sharp crenellated summits. Some 



62 



LEVA DA DE METADE. 




'mttherless bairn' 



of the party in the meantime followed the course of the 

Levada de Metade, one of the most beautiful in Madeira, 

which winds along the face of the precipices. 

As the writer of one of the many books 

I have read about Madeira truly says, 

' the walk is one that requires a good 

head and strong legs ; for the way is 

long, the path narrow and slippery, 

and the precipices steep.' Some of our 

party returned quite wet through from 

having slipped into the levada, though 

fortunately none had fallen over the 

precipices. 

A rapid descent down a good road brought us to Santa 

Anna. There was a gentle monotony about the journey that 

was highly conducive to 
slumber, especially after our 
early start (I" had been up 
since 3.30), and all the ex- 
citement of the morning. To 
the feeling thus in- 
duced I yielded, until 
I was unexpectedly 
aroused by a sudden 
shock, to find that we 
had come into violent 
collision with an ob- 
durate cow which 
blocked the way ; that 
my hammock over- 
hung the precipice ; 
and that the bearers 

were clinging desperately to their companions and to what- 
ever else they could clutch ; while the peasant proprietors of 




NEAR RIBIERO FKIO 



A STARTLING INCIDENT. 



the cow tugged at her horns, apparently without much effect. 
Ultimately we got out of the dilemma (though I cannot easily 
tell how) without the terrible catastrophe occurring which at 
one time appeared almost inevitable. As soon as I had re- 
covered from the excitement caused by the encounter with 
the cow, I began to rub my eyes and to look about me. The 
whole character of the vegetation had changed. Fuchsia 
and hydrangea hedges, with pink belladonna and blue agap- 
anthus lilies abounded ; and the evidences of a warmer 
temperature than that of the heights we had just crossed 
were numerous. In many places, especially near the cot- 
tages, we were rather puzzled to see trees bearing what at 
first looked like huge crops of tallow candles, but which 
proved, on closer inspection, to be 
only pods of Indian corn, stripped of 
their husks, and hung out to ripen 
and dry in the sun. The 
effect produced is peculiar, 
especially in the dusk and 
from a distance. 

Santa Anna, on 
the northern 
coast, where we 
had now ar- 
rived, seemed 
a nice little vil- 
lage ; and we 
were none of us 
sorry to reach 
the excellent 
hotel, kept by 
Senhor Luiz 

Acciaioli, a gentleman of some property in these parts, who 
speaks French fluently, and by whom we were cordially 




6 4 



HOTEL AT SANTA ANNA. 



received; The rooms, though limited in number, were fairly 
clean : nearly all of them commanding extensive views in one 
direction or another. From the 
large sitting-room one could look out 
on three sides, either up or down 
the coast, or into a garden literally 
crammed with flowers of every sort 
and description. The view from one 
window of this apartment, and also 
from my bedroom, right away to- 
wards St. Jorge, including a glimpse 
of the arched rock near the fossil- 
bed, was specially fine. 

Our party being so large, we had 
thought it prudent to bring both 
tents and beds with us. The former 
were not required; but the latter 
were highly useful. The dining- 
room of the establishment was fairly 
well furnished with plate, china, 

and glass ; but if we had not brought our head-steward, 
second-cook, and some stores from the yacht, I fear we 
should have been but poorly off for food : the hotel re- 
sources, as I ascertained by personal inquiry in the kitchen, 
being limited to eggs. The kitchen was a curious old arched 
place with a large fireplace and chimney-corner, occupied by 
our host and a rather good-looking girl — his daughter-in-law 
I imagine — with a very pretty plump baby, whose fat legs 
(gigots, as they called them) both grandfather and mother 
were never tired of exhibiting. We tried to make our rooms 
look homelike, and the dinner-table gay with the flowers 
which we had gathered on the road, and then enjoyed a 
very cheery dinner, the menu of which — as a specimen of 
what may be done under somewhat unfavourable conditions 




THE LOCAL BAXA-N'A 



A MADEIRA MENU. 



6c 



for the exercise of the culinary art — may perhaps be found 
interesting. 



SANTA ANNA, MADEIRA. 



Menu du 8 Octobke. 



Potage queue de bceuf a la Pico Ruivo. 



Cotelettes de veau a la Ribeiro Frio. 



Bceuf roti a la Sunbeam. 



2Ia'is a la Santa Anna. 

Pommes de terre a la Camacha. 

Oignons a la Bella-donna. 



Poulet a la Cabo Giruo. 



Ponding a Vinconnue. 
Compote de /raises a la Norham Castle. 



Sardines a la celeste. 
Dessert assorti. 



After dinner we adjourned to the big sitting-room and 
were further regaled with some delightful music, which Mr. 
Boissier managed to extract from the most antiquated-looking 
of old pianos. Under his skilful manipulation the instru- 
ment sounded more like an old-time spinet than a dilapidated 
but comparatively modern instrument ; and to songs judi- 
ciously selected it made a most pleasing and appropriate 
accompaniment. There were plenty of books to read and 
pictures to look at, so that a few days' wet weather spent 
here need not be so very terrible. Our fifty hammock-men 
and carriers, made happy by the gift of a shilling each, we 
dismissed to find what quarters they could in the village, 
there being neither room nor food for them in the inn. 

G 



66 



S/R ROGER AND THE PEACOCK. 



Tuesday, October' gth. — The twenty- 
third anniversary of our wedding day was 
ushered in by the performance of Men- 
delssohn's ' Wedding March ' on the spinet- 
like instrument before men- 
tioned. I was awake 'long 
before daylight and saw the 
dawn break and the sun 
rise from behind the cliffs 
and mountains to the east- 
ward. In the bright garden 
beyond the verandah were 
several peacocks, with one 
of which Sir Eoger had a 
most amusing encounter. 
Startled at suddenly meet- 
ing a bird the like of 
which he had pro- 




bably never 
seen be- 
fore, he 
fled, 



much de- 
moralised ; but 
a moment's reflec- 
tion convincing him 
that his conduct as a 
poodle — and a black one 
too — had been wanting in 
dignity, he returned, and, 
attacking the peacock in 
the rear, plucked just one 
feather from his tail. The 
indignant and outraged bird 
thereupon hopped up into a 
pear-tree close to my win- 
dow ; and during the whole 
time I was dressing, the 



SPINNING. 



67 




THE ARBOUR, SANTA ANNA 

hostile creatures carried on what appeared 
to be a muttered controversy of considerable 
acrimony : the peacock safely perched in the 
pear-tree, Sir Roger on his hind legs, with 
his head resting on the window-sill. 

It was intensely hot when we started at nine o'clock ; but 
we soon got into shady lanes, and the road was so interesting 
that it did not seem long. We passed a little cottage where 
a woman was spinning at a wheel, and not much further on 
a girl spinning in the old-fashioned and graceful way with a 
distaff. At Fayal the church is remarkable, not only for its 
peculiar style of architecture, but for its situation, imbedded 
as it seems to be in vegetation of all kinds : — the village itself 
being in a fertile sheltered valley where many sugar-canes 
grow; whereas at Santa Anna there are none. The culti- 
vation of sugar is an important factor in the prosperity of 
Madeira : a fact which seems to have been fully recognised 
by the merchants of Funchal, the arms of which city consist 



68 



HAMMOCK DECORA TIONS. 



of five sugar-loaves. On our way we had an admirable 
prospect of the Penha d'Aguia, 1,900 feet high, standing 
out in bold isolation. Our hammock-men had this morning 
each brought us a bouquet, made up according to their 
several tastes and inclinations ; and you may therefore 
imagine how gaily our hammocks were decorated. In fact, we 
appeared to be reposing on beds of flowers, the space above 
our heads and below our feet being filled up with floral 
trophies. The bearers had taken special pains to decorate my 
hammock, and had suspended from the poles bunches of 
grapes, Indian corn, apples, and lilies, collected on the road. 

Before reaching 
Porto da Cruz we 
halted for some time 
under the vine- 
covered trellis of a 
small inn, while our 
men rested and ex- 
changed gossip with 
the peasants return- 
ing from the great 
annual festival which 
was held at Machico 
yesterday. It is 
supposed to be the 
anniversary of the 
daj^ when Machim 
landed ; and on the 
present occasion the 
holiday was observed 
with special solem- 
nity, the Bishop 
having come down to honour it with 
his presence. From the descriptions 




A FESTA. 



69 



-which I heard, the procession of figures and images by moon- 
light must have been very curious and interesting. We saw 
-the Bishop on the road yesterday in gorgeous array of scarlet 
and lace. Most of the peasants who now passed us were sing- 
ing or playing on the native instrument, the machete, which is 
something between a hand-violin, a guitar, and a banjo, and 
-which gives forth somewhat sweet little tones when skilfully 
played. The women were mostly dressed in orange and red 
petticoats, with white bodices, and some sort of dark jacket 
•or spencer, and had orange-coloured handkerchiefs bound 
round their heads. All, without exception, men, women, and 
•children, bore strings of small objects round their necks — 
most frequently sacred cakes, or curious little images of Nossa 
Senhora de Machicos, made in pastry or bread, which they 




RIBEIRO FRIO 



-were taking home to those who, less fortunate than them- 
selves, had not been able to attend the festa. Others carried 



7o 



TAKING COALS TO NEWCASTLE. 




us to 



dried fish of anything but pleasant aspect, 
calabashes of water, bread, cakes, dried 
plums, and figs — all of which last seemed 
rather superfluous and like taking coals 
to Newcastle ; for I should have thought 
that nearly every peasant must have had a 
fig-tree of his own, and that fruit must be 
more plentiful in the country than in the 
town, whence they were bringing them. 

From Porto da Cruz to Lamaceiros 
the road was steep, with luxuriant vege- 
tation in all the watercourses on either 
side, caladiums and ferns growing in the 
wildest profusion. When we reached the 
summit, and our bearers turned to allow 
enjoy the view, it was indeed a magnificent panorama 



VOLCANO OF LA GO A. 



71 



that opened before us — the finest in all Madeira, some people 
say. 




PENHA D'AGUIA 



At Lamaceiros we met a messenger from Mr. Blandy, 
bringing a note to tell us that he could not possibly meet us, 
as he had been trying to emulate a certain distinguished 
statesman's skill in felling trees, and .had unfortunately 
chopped a piece out of his own leg instead. A tolerably 
long walk brought us to his house at Santo Antonio da 
Serra, 1,500 feet above Santa Cruz, where he and Mrs. 
Blandy met us in an avenue of blue hydrangeas, the adjoin- 
ing garden being filled with blue agapanthus, pink bella- 
donna-lilies and other flowers. The house itself is a very 
cosy little place, and the views from the garden are superb. 
After, a short rest Mr. Alfred Blandy volunteered to show us 
the now extinct crater of the volcano of Lagoa, of which not 
much remains to be seen. After struggling for about a 
quarter of a mile through very wet whortleberry and bilberry 
bushes, bearing some of the largest fruit I ever saw, all that 
was visible of the promised crater was a deep round depression 
in the ground covered with the same whortle and bilberry 
bushes, and with a little water at the bottom. Mr. Seymour 



72 



MACHICO. 



Haden considered it doubtful whether it was a crater at all; 
and I shared his doubts. 

Our return journey after leaving the Quinta was by a steep 
and slippery road, and many and great were the falls thereon. 
On the way we met more peasants coming from the festa, 
walking in single file, playing the machete, dancing and singing, 
and decorated with flowers and strings of edibles, like those 
we had previously seen. We passed through the pretty little 
town of Machico, of which naturally we could not observe 
much in the dark gloaming ; and after a little delay and some 
difficulty we succeeded in getting a shore boat to take us off 
to the yacht, which Tom had brought round from Funchal in 
the course of the day, and which was lying some way out, 



gently rocking in 
the evening 
breeze. Our 
little army 
of hammock- 
men and por- 
ters expressed 
through their 
head man a 




great desire to pass 
the night on board 
the ' Sunbeam ; ' 
but we grace- 
fully declined 
to accept them 
as guests, and 
having retained 
the services of 
four bearers for 
the morrow, we 
dismissed the re- 
mainder. 



CANI^AL. 73 

Late in the evening we sent up some rather good rockets 
which we happened to have on board, and illuminated the 
vessel with blue lights, in honour of our wedding day. I 
fancy the exhibition gave great delight on shore, judging from 
the shouts and cries which we heard ; although we were 
afterwards told that the inhabitants were greatly puzzled by 
the spectacle, thinking indeed that it might be some sort of 
supernatural visitation on the part of the Saint, who had 
arrived the day or rather the night after his own festa — in 
fact 'the day after the fair,' in more senses than one. The 
night was exquisite in this peaceful bay ; and one could well 
realise the feelings of joy and exultation that must have been 
experienced by the first discoverers of this lovely island. 

About nine o'clock the next morning we got up steam, 
and proceeded along the coast to Canical (or rather just 
beyond that place) ; where we landed at a sort of natural 
pier, formed by large stones jutting out into the sea, just 
beneath the white church of Nossa Senhora da Piedade, which 
is perched on the little conical hill that had served us as a 
landmark. The water was so clear that as we landed in 
the cutter, although we had six feet under us, it seemed as 
though we were on the point of running aground. The 
bearers whom we had retained were waiting for us ; and, 
some of us on foot, some in hammocks, we quickly traversed 
the barren little neck of land and commenced the ascent to the 
higher ground.. A most fascinating view rewarded us when 
we reached the summit of the cliffs : — of brown rocks, steep 
headlands, jutting out into the bluest of deep blue seas, very 
dark, and yet so clear you could count every stone below, 
where it was calm, even from this height ; though in places 
the waves were breaking on the shore in arches of white 
foam and delicate pale green. We could see right away 
towards Sao Lourenzo (named after the ship of the first 
Portuguese discoverer of the island), and Fora, with its 

H 



74 



CANI^AL. 



remarkable lighthouse, in one direction ; and in the other, over 
the headland of Bode San Antonio, to the green valley of 
Porto da Cruz, Fayal and Santa Anna, where the hotel at 
which we were yesterday the guests shone conspicuously 

white among 
its verdant 
surround- 
ings. Fur- 
ther on 
again, we 
could ' see 
San Jorge 
and a long 
stretch of 
coast,melt- 
ing into 
that exqui- 
site soft 
haze which 
seems to 
be one of 
the cha- 
racteristics 
of Madei- 
ra scenery. 
What we 
had really 
come to look at, however, 
was not the landscape, but 
the so-called fossil-beds, a 
curious geological formation, 
which looks exactly like a 
petrified forest, the trunks of 
old trees, the interlacing of 




FOSSIL-LAND. 



75 



branches, and the growth of separate twigs being all equally 
well represented. In reality this curious presentment is caused 
by the washing away of the very fine particles of basaltic 
sand from some curious fantastic -shaped calcareous infiltra- 
tion : the result being that the deposit looks exactly like trees 




FOSSIL-LAND 



turned into lime-stone. Darwin, who visited some similar 
beds in New Zealand with the late Admiral Fitzroy, has thus 
described them : — ' One day I accompanied Captain Fitzroy 
to Bald Head, the place mentioned by so many navigators, 
where some imagine they saw corals, and others that they 
saw petrified trees, standing in the position in which they 
had grown. According to our view the beds had been formed 
by the wind having heaped up fine sand composed of minute 
rounded particles of shells and corals, during which process 
branches and roots of trees, together with many shells, became 
enclosed. The whole then became consolidated by the per- 
colation of calcareous matter, and the cylindrical cavities 
left by the _ decaying of the wood were thus also filled up 
with a hard pseudo-stalactital stone. The weather is now 
wearing away the softer parts, and in consequence the hard 
casts of the roots and branches of the trees project above 



76 DRA GON- TREES. 



the surface, and in a singularly deceptive manner resemble 
the stumps of a dead thicket.' 

All too soon we were compelled to leave our pleasant seat 
among the rocks, and the delights of the pleasant northerly- 
breeze, to return to the boat. Some of the smaller inhabitants 
of Canical, in the scantiest of dirty- white garments, had begun 
to appear upon the scene, with the dry, bare, sun-burnt, 
semi-African character of which their small, brown, impish 
figures well harmonised. The distance is short from Machico 
to Santa Cruz. At the latter place legend asserts that a large 
cedar cross was erected in memory of the first discoverers 
of the island, of which cross the inhabitants still profess to 
show a piece in the church. The village itself contains little 
that is remarkable ; but there is a good hotel on the heights 
above, kept by Senhor Gonsalvez, where travellers are made 
very comfortable and whence many charming excursions may 
be made. The whole coast is fine, especially at Cape Garajao 
— so called from the number of gulls that frequent it. In the 
interstices of the cliffs are numerous dragon-trees, with their 
curiously gnarled arms and spiky, artichoke-like heads. They 
always seem to me to possess more of the animal than of the 
vegetable character ; and I half expect them to justify their 
formidable name, and suddenly to stretch out their claws and 
•draw something or somebody into their poisonous embrace. 

At Funchal we found H.M.S. ' Frolic,' 'the gunboat' we 
had seen in the distance this morning, just arrived from 
Plymouth en route for Sierra Leone. Her commander, Cap- 
tain Moore, who came to call on us, had been on ■ board the 
' Orion ' when we were at Alexandria in the spring and had 
ridden with us to the Mex Forts. 

I had announced that I would be ' at home ' to our friends 
and any of their friends who might wish to see the yacht, at 
four o'clock this afternoon. Everybody came, I think, both 
English and Portuguese, including the two Governors, military 



A HURRIED SEPARATION. 



77 



and civil, the Director of Customs and many others. Among our 
visitors was the wife of the Spanish Consul, a charming little i 
woman, who had been on board the ' Sunbeam ' at Algiers some 
years ago, when her father was Consul there. In the midst 
of our entertainment, somewhat to our consternation, the 
homeward-bound steamer ' Grantully Castle ' was signalled, be- 



tween twelve 
and twenty- 
four hours be- 
fore her time, 
having made 
the quickest 
Castle Line 
passage on 
record from 
the Cape — 
14 days 22 
hours. All 
was bustle 
on board, 
for Captain 
Young, her 
commander, 
was anxious 
to start again 
as soon as 

our already written letters from the hotel on shore to send 
home by this mail. The ' Grantully Castle,' like all the 
Castle Line of packets, seems to be a most comfortable ship, 
beautifully fitted up in every respect. Captain Young, to 
whom we paid a brief visit, proved to be an old acquaintance, 
having been in command of the ' Courland,' which lay along- 
side us at Spithead for forty-eight hours three winters ago, 
when we were detained, on our outward passage to Gibraltar, 




possible, in 
order to keep 
up the repu- 
tation for 
speed which 
his vessel 
had already 
gained. Mr. 
Shaw - Lefe - 
vre, who was 
to return to 
England by 
her, had 

therefore to 
make hur- 
ried prepara- 
tions for de- 
parture, and 
there was no 
time to get 



78 A RELIC. 

by a thick fog and a heavy snowstorm, in one of the intervals 
of which we had gone on board his ship. 

Our guests having departed, and there being nothing to 
detain us, we decided to sail to-night, instead of waiting till 
to-morrow as we had originally intended doing : the first 
result of which determination was a general hurry and scurry 
of sending for washing, making last purchases, settling bills, 
and getting things from the Custom House. We paid our 
final visit to the comfortable Santa Clara Hotel, where we 
found the party at table d'hote very much increased by 
the arrival for the winter season of the boarders from the 
Quinta, where they had been spending the summer months. 
I never stayed in a cleaner, more comfortable, or better- 
managed hotel than the Santa Clara. The efforts of the 
proprietor Mr. Eeid, and of the energetic manager Mr. 
Cardwell, and his wife, to make their guests comfortable and 
to attend to their wants, cannot be too highly praised. 

In a little recess under the stairs, at the hotel, stood a 
thing which is seldom seen nowadays : — a real old-fashioned 
sedan-chair, with two crests — one being that of a knight of 
the Tower and Sword, and the other a wolfs head — painted 
on the panels, and the initials E.P. just beneath them. On 
enquiry we found that this chair had been at one time the 
property of Mrs. Elizabeth Page, the wife of a well-known 
English merchant, who resided in Madeira in the early part 
of this century, and who was decorated by the Portuguese 
Government, in recognition of his public services. I wonder 
how many beauteous dames and pretty damsels this particular 
chair has carried up and down the steep and slippery streets 
of Eunchal. When the occupant — though perhaps still fair 
— happened to be fat and forty, it must have been hard work 
for the bearers to carry their burden with becoming steadiness 
and speed. 

We bade good-bye to Mr. Seymour Haden, who decided to 



DEPARTURE. 



79 



remain here to await the arrival of his son from South Africa : 
Mr. Cardwell accompanied us on board, to see us fairly off ; 
and soon, with sincere regret at having to leave a place in 
which we had met so many kind friends, the anchor was 
weighed, all the sails were set, and exactly at the witching 
hour of midnight, with a fair wind, we were bound for Bar- 
badoes and the Caribbean Sea. 





MADEIRA TO TRINIDAD. 



. . . I would sail upon the tropic sea, 
Where, fathom long, the blood-red dulses grow. 



GOING on deck about four o'clock this morning I found, 
as I had expected, that Madeira was still in sight, at no 
great distance. As day dawned, the outline of the island, 
with its mountainous rocks and ravines, and the Desertas 
and Porto Santo, became more plainly visible, through a soft 
haze. If I had not longed (not quite for forty years, like 
Charles Kingsley, whose touching book, ' At Last,' I have 
just been reading, but ever since I was a child) to see the 
glorious vegetation and beauties of the West Indies, my 
regret at leaving this delightful island would have been even 
keener than it now is. My dream was very near being 
realised in 1872, when we were at Halifax in the ' Eothen,' 



REMINISCENCES. 



81 



and Admiral Fanshawe (who then commanded the station) 
pressed us to accompany the fleet on their annual cruise 
to the West Indies, and also invited us to pay him a visit 
in the Bermudas. We had not sufficient confidence, how- 
ever, in our somewhat crank and unmanageable craft to 
undertake so long a cruise in those troubled waters, and there- 
fore reluctantly gave up the ide*a ; contenting ourselves on 
that occasion — not but that it was a very pleasant trip, and 
one that we heartily enjoyed — with ascending the navigable 
rivers on the east coast of North America from the St. 
Lawrence and Saguenay to the Potomac and James Eiver, 
leaving the yacht at Baltimore and returning home in one 




of the Cunarders, the ' Bussia, a splendid boat, going at 
what in those days was considered a tremendous pace, and ' as 
dry as a bone,' though we experienced some heavy weather. 
In 1876 another dream of my life urns fully realised. Never, 
in my highest flights of fancy, had I conceived that any- 
thing on earth could exist so beautiful, or that mere existence 



32 



SWEET POTATOES. 



m. 




L 



At all 



could become such a pleasure, 
as in the fairy-like islands of 
the South Pacific. Now I hope 
that my second dream is about 
to become an actuality — to some 
extent at any rate ; and I only 
trust that it may answer my 
expectations as completely as in the previous case, 
events we* shall see ' niggers,' in whom (their babies espe- 
cially) I always delight. I think the latter are something like 
kittens — far preferable in their babyhood. 

Though not yet absolutely in the tropics, we began our 
old ' at sea in the tropics ' habits this morning by helping to 
scrub decks, being ' hosed,' and generally dabbling about. It 
was very pleasant ; for the water was quite warm and the sun 
hot. Even at 7 a.m. there was no wind to speak of, and we 
had been becalmed nearly all night. The day was for the 
most part devoted to a general settling-down, tidying-up, 
and planting of ferns, belladonna lilies and sweet-potatoes, 
both of which latter we were assured would last two *or three 
weeks, and thus keep our little floating home gay with floral 
decoration till we can again adorn it with the gorgeous flowers 
of more tropical regions. The accompanying sketch will con- 
vey some idea of what we fondly hope our potatoes will be like 
in the earlier stage of their growth. 

During the afternoon, Tom spent a good deal of time at 
the mast-head, looking for that ' true wind ' which does not 
come quite so freely or quickly as we could wish at present. 
I should dearly like to ' up funnel ' and steam at once into 
the Trades, so as to be able to linger on shore when we arrive 



A TROPICAL SUNSET. 83 

on the other side of the Atlantic ; but that is not to be thought 
of. We must not, however, grumble ; for somehow the ' Sun- 
beam ' slips along wonderfully, apparently with no wind at 
all ; and at noon to-day we had made forty-eight knots since 
midnight. She looks lovely, with her big light cotton stud- 
ding-sails and every possible stitch of canvas set. Towards 
dusk the children inveigled us all into playing ' Puss in the 
corner,' 'Tom Tiddler's ground' and other active games, 
because, as they said, ' You know you and papa always say 
exercise is so good for us all ; and it is so difficult to get 
it on board ship.' 

The sunset was too gorgeous for even the children to 
resist stopping their play to look at. Anything more splendid 
than the piling-up of the fantastically-shaped clouds on a 
background of exquisitely blended purple, orange, yellow, 
green and blue, it is difficult to imagine, and quite beyond 
my powers to describe. But it is not so difficult to say how 
much the beauty of these sunrises and sunsets enhances the 
pleasure of a voyage in the ' Trades and Tropics,' always 
providing, as infinitely mutable Nature does, something fresh 
to look forward to, some new and wondrous effect every night 
and every morning. Then the nights themselves. How beau- 
tiful they are, whether star-lit or moon-lit ! I never know 
which I like best ; and it would not be possible to exaggerate 
the charms of either. We revelled in the placid magnificence 
of the scene and the warmth of the atmosphere to-night, 
listening to the music which some of our party were kind 
(and energetic) enough to perform for our benefit in the 
cabin below. Fatigue at last overcame even the sense of 
enjoyment ; and we retired to bed, after a long and busy day. 

Friday, October 1 2th. — The weather was fine, with a light 
■wind. At noon we had only run eighty miles. We saw a 
barquantine to the N.W., but soon left her, hull down. Later 
"we saw a steamer, and made our number (N.T.G.F.), which 



8 4 



MID-OCEAN CONFERS A TIONS. 



she could not understand. The first letter of this signal is 
a square flag, which generally indicates that something is 
wrong on board the vessel showing it. Consequently the cap- 
tain of the steamer, which proved to be the ' Armathwaite/ 
bound for the Eiver Plate, very kindly altered his course and 



came alongside 
to ascertain 
if we wanted 
anything. 

When told 
oar name, 
he appeared 
very much 
pleased, and 
with a look 
of satisfac- 
tion, said, 
' So that 's 
the " Sun- 




him.' Tom having 
made him- 

self known, 
they had a 
short conver- 
sation; after 
which our 
friendly visi- 
tor and his 
crew gave 
us a parting 
cheer and 
went their 
way, evi- 



beam" ! Is 1 dently much 

Mr. Brassey | ^ ; ?:iv gratified by 

on board ? p^^^^^^^^^^# g the unex- 

I should t pected inter- 

like to see view with 

the ' Sunbeam ' and its owner, which the kindness and good- 
nature of the captain of the steamship had brought about. 
The ' Armathwaite ' was scarcely out of sight when we 
sighted a French steamer, and exchanged signals with her ; 
by means of which we ascertained that she was bound for 
Valparaiso through the Straits of Magellan. These mid- 
ocean conversations are always interesting, and sometimes 
very useful, in throwing light on the fate of missing or 
overdue vessels, or in saving unnecessaiy anxiety. In 1 876 
the ' Sunbeam ' was reported as ' lost with all hands,' and 



i up aloft: 



85 



great concern was felt — by some of our friends, at all events. 
A few days later it was reported at Lloyd's that we had 
spoken a Prussian barque, just four days after we were 
supposed to have gone to the bottom ; so that all solicitude 
on our account was at once relieved. 

At 6.45 we had a successful Penny Beading, which was 
largely attended, and much appreciated. I don't see why 
they should be called ' penny readings,' as nobody pays a 
23enny to go to them. We must think of another and a 
better name. ' Popular Nautical Entertainments ' would be 
more appropriate I think. 

Saturday, October 13th. — The wind was still light and 
the weather fine. I had been unfortunate enough to get a 
chill before leaving Madeira, probably in the course of our wet 

expedition to Babacal, and spent 
the greater part of the day in bed, 
feeling ill and seasick. 

Sunday, October 14th. — We had 
service at 1 1 and 4. 

Monday, October i$th. — In the 
afternoon the children were much 
delighted by being taken up the 
foremast in the 'boatswain's chair,' 
one by one. First, they were care- 
fully tied to the ' chair,' or rather 
plank, their little faces looking 
very grave while the operation 
was being performed. Then 
they were slowly hauled up, 
Tom and Kindred going into 
the rigging to steady them, for 
the yacht was rolling a good 
deal, and from my own previous 
experience I should think the 




■■up above the would so high : 



86 



A LECTURE ON STORMS. 



motion aloft must have been most unpleasant. Arrived at 
the foretop, they admired the scene with great satisfaction ; 




called out to tell us with pride how small we looked stand- 
ing beneath them ; then descended with beaming faces, and 
arrived on deck in exuberant spirits. 

In the evening Tom gave us an interesting lecture on the 
law of storms, illustrated by diagrams. The most salient 
points to the uninitiated appeared to be that in the Northern 
Hemisphere the circular storm goes round against the clock 
hands ; in the Southern Hemisphere, with them. In the 
Northern Hemisphere, as you stand facing the gale, the centre 
is always eight points to the right. In the Southern Hemi- 
sphere this rule is reversed. 

Tuesday and Wednesday were squally and ' roily ' days, 
and writing was a matter of extreme difficulty. Some of the 
atmospheric and cloud effects which we observed were very 
strange. One was the result of a curious combination of rain- 
bow and cumulus ; while another w T as produced b} 7 a beautiful 
cloud, from which a shower descended in a long narrow streak, 
like a cataract. On the last-named day we saw our first 
flying-fish, and hung out lanterns to catch some at night. 



FIRST WEEK AT SEA. 87 



Thursday, October 18th. — For breakfast this morning we 
had some of the flying-fish caught during the night. They 
are pretty creatures to look at, putting one in mind of 
swallows, both in appearance and in their manner of flight. 
In taste they resemble a rather dry herring. 

Although we have now been some days in the tropics, the 
heat is not at all excessive, and there is always a pleasant 
breeze. This part of our experience is very gratifying ; but, 
on the other hand, it is somewhat disappointing not to have ) 
beheld any of the wonders of the equatorial sea, such as 
sharks, whales, porpoises, Portuguese men-of-war, dolphins, 
or any fishes with prodigious tails — or without them. The 
absence of ' large orders ' in the shape of the denizens of the 
deep reminds me of the bitter complaints of the American 
traveller from ' Down East,' that he had crossed the Kocky 
Mountains without seeing any buffaloes or any prairie-dogs. 
Consequently he pronounced the ' Eockies ' to be a ' fraud.' 
Still, the time has passed quickly and agreeably. We have 
been busily occupied, and the feeling was unanimous which 
was expressed to-day by one who exclaimed, ' Is it possible we 
have been a week at sea ? It does not seem like three days ! ' 

Friday, October igth. — At 7 a.m. we sighted a large ship 
steering N.E. We had another good entertainment on deck 
in the evening ; for it is getting too hot to remain below more 
than is absolutely necessary. 

Saturday and Sunday were uneventful ; save that on the 
Sabbath we had service on deck. 

Monday, October 22nd. — Our last flowers from Madeira 
had to be thrown overboard to-day, notwithstanding the tender 
care and attention, including the frequent cutting of stalks 
and changing of water, that has been bestowed upon them. 

After much reading of books and many consultations, 
Tom decided that it was rather early in the season to go to 
Barbadoes, at the risk of encountering tornadoes and tern- 



AN INTERRUPTED LECTURE. 



??.0 MTVUT ATE. ft^vUNUMT^ ^^ 



pests and of 
being caught 
in a hurri- 
cane ; and 
that it would 
be more pru- 
dent to pro- 
ceed direct 
to Tobago 
and Trini- 
dad, which 
are below the lati- 
tude of these violent 
•ms. This is somewhat 
disappointing, as I much 
want to see Barbadoes. We are 
rpected there; and all our letters 
will be awaiting us. Still, we must 
hope for the best and trust that we 
may pick our correspondence up at 
Jamaica or elsewhere. 

The afternoon was unsettled, and 
dljjb about six o'clock, just as Dr. Hudson 

had begun one of his ambulance lec- 
tures, a sudden squall came on, obliging all hands to fly 
in order to furl and take in sail with the greatest possible 
rapidity. It soon passed over, but the breeze remained, 
and all the evening it was delightful and exhilarating to 
see the ' Sunbeam ' tearing through the water at a speed of 
twelve or fourteen knots, sending great waves of foam from 
her bow. 

Tuesday, October 23rd. — This was by far the hottest day 
we have had yet. After experiencing very light airs all night, 
and a flat calm from four to eight a.m., we prepared steam ; 







,,; 




v 



POPULAR NAUTICAL ENTERTAINMENT.' 



89 



but before the water was warm in the boilers a breeze sprang 
up, and we were soon scudding merrily before it. In the 
evening Dr. Hudson delivered the postponed lecture, which 
was well attended. 

Wednesday, October 24th. — A real flat calm. There was 
so little air that the fires in the engine-room, lighted at 
twelve, did not burn up till three. The difference in tempera- 
ture since we have been under steam is considerable: our 
cabin, which had been 
so delightfully cool, 
with a fresh breeze 
blowing through it, 
being now almost un- 
bearably hot. 

The ' Popular Nau- 
tical Entertainment ' 
on deck at six o'clock 
was, as usual, highly 
successful. Some of 
the songs were ex- 
tremely good, and 
the performance of 
the ' Papyro-pectens ' 
band was most amus- 
ing. The performers 
consisted of Mr. Bois- 
sier, Mr. Pritchett, 
Dr. Hudson, Miss 
Ehoda and Miss 

Violet Liddell, Miss Muriel and Miss Marie Brassey, all of 
whom played, with great effect, instruments of the tea-tray 
and paper-covered-comb order. I may venture to annex the 
programme. 

K 




9 o 



ROBINSON CRUSOE ISLAND. 





'SUNBEAM' R. Y. S. 


POPULAR AND NAUTICAL ENTERTAINMENT. 




October 24, 1883. 




Lat. I3 D i' N., long. 48° W. 


Perfor 


tnance by ' Sir Thomas Waif, L.C.,' exhibited by Miss 




Muriel A. Brassey. 


Song 


Gooseberry Wine . . . Mr. Boissier. 


Song 


Billy Johnson's Ball . . Mr. Genge. 


Beading 


Guy Heavystone . . . Sir Thomas Brassey. 


Song 


Our Sailors on the Sea . .. Mr. Frogbrooke. 


Song 


All among the Hay . . . Mr. Pratt. 


Song 


The Minstrel Girl . . . Mr. Eussell. 


Song 


The Monkey and the Man . Mr. Boissier. 


Song^N . 


Alonzo the Brave . . . Mr. Baulfe. 




The British Grenadiers ( By th ® Members of 

-»r 7 ji xi 7, r ji tt 7 7 1 THE PaP YRO-PECTENS 

March of the Men of Harlech Band 


Performance by ' Sir Roger Knobs, K.C.,' exhibited by 




Lady Brassey. 




God Save the Queen. 



Thursday, October 2$th. — This was the hottest day we 
have had, the thermometer standing at 8g° in the cabins, 
125 in the galley, 166 in the engine-room. We all began 
to think longingly of the pleasant shades and fresh fruits of 
Tobago, which we hope to reach on Saturday night or Sunday 
morning. The island lies directly in our course for Trinidad ; 
otherwise I do not suppose we should have thought of visiting 
it. The inhabitants assert that it is the real ' Robinson 
Crusoe ' Island, though I still incline to the old belief in the 
Island of Juan Fernandez. I must say, however, that there 
are strong arguments in favour of their theory, one bemg 
founded on the fact that Juan Fernandez is a solitary island 
far out in the Pacific, not easily reached in a small boat ; 



SWEET-POTATO CULTURE. 91 

whereas Trinidad and Tobago are in sight of one another 
and are close to other islands, the inhabitants of which — the 
tierce Caribs — were at one time constantly at war, and are 
even said to have been cannibals — a fact which might account 
for the appearance of ' Friday ' and the other prisoners on 
Robinson Crusoe's island. 

It is rather provoking, after coming so far, to be so pressed 
for time (as we always are, and always shall be, I suppose, as 
long as Tom is in office) that we are unable to visit the various 
islands we pass so close to, each and all of which possess 
some special interest. 

Friday, October 26th. — The heat to-day was very trying. 
We saw one large gannet, the first bird which for many days 
had made its appearance. This would seem to be a sign 
that we are approaching land. 

My sweet-potatoes have done better than anybody else's 
on board, and have formed a perfect grove under my sky- 
light ; in fact, they grow so fast that to train them properly 
occupies a great deal of time ; and I have come to the con- 
clusion that potato-culture, with the thermometer as it was 
in my cabin to-day, is a highly- fatiguing operation, especially 
when it involves training the young tendrils along the ceiling, 
with one's hands well over one's head, meanwhile balancing 
oneself on a rickety stool, not made steadier by the motion 
of the yacht. 

Saturday, October 2jtli. — 'Hotter than ever!' was the 
generally-expressed opinion of everybody this morning. It 
cerLa/nly was a broiling day; and we longed for the ice and 
fruits of land. In the afternoon, or rather evening, when it 
was somewhat cooler, we got up a little entertainment to pass 
the time and make people think of something else than the 
temperature. 

In the course of the night, the equatorial current to the 
northward not having been so strong as we had expected, we 



9 2 



APPROACHING TRINIDAD. 



found that we had passed the south-west extremity of Tohago 
and were approaching Trinidad. At daybreak we were 
between the two islands. It would have been necessary to go 
back many miles in order to make the port and capital of 
Tobago, which Tom thought it a pity to do, considering the 
intense heat ; as the voyage would have been against whid 
and current, and might have occupied a considerable time. 





CHAPTER 

A pleasing land of drowsy head it was ; 

Of dreams that wave before the half-shut eye ; 

And of gay castles in the clouds that pass. 

Sunday, October 28th. 

AT an early hour this morning, the mountain-tops of the 
island of Tobago were faintly visible in the distance, 
and, to my horror, somewhat behind us : the wind was fair 
for Trinidad and the Port of Spain, the capital of that island, 
and thither we were now bound. I am somewhat consoled 
by the thought that there is not a great deal to be seen at 
Tobago, where the legendary Old Man 

Lived on rice, sugar, and sago. 

Still, as this particular island was included in our original 
programme, I am sorry to have missed it. 

Tobago is of volcanic origin, and consists of a central 



94 APPROACH TO TRINIDAD. 

range of mountains, nearly 2,000 feet high, and of hills and 
ridges descending to the sea-shore. It is the last and most 
southerly of the chain of Windward Islands, lying not quite so 
far to the east as Barbadoes. The scenery is described as 
picturesque ; and the soil is said to be equal in richness of 
production to any of the other islands of the West Indies. 
The principal products are sugar, rum, molasses, and cocoa- 
nuts, of which latter 600,000 were exported in 1877. At 
one time indigo and cotton used to be extensively grown, as 
much as 2,600,000 lbs. of cotton having been sent to England 
in one year rather more than a century ago. 

One advantage was gained by our missing Tobago : we 
had daylight by which to admire the splendid scenery on 
the north side of 'the Island of Trinidad, which shortly 
opened to our view, and which is among the finest I have 
ever seen. The coast is precipitous, and very varied; high 
and rocky in places, in others covered from the summit 
of the mountains to the water's edge with the thickest 
vegetation. As far as we could see from the yacht, the 
flora appeared to consist of palm-trees of various kinds, 
and all the luxuriant growth of a virgin tropical forest, in 
which were embosomed small white houses, surrounded by 
clusters of tiny brown huts, like a swan encircled by a 
brood of cygnets. These were the habitations of planters ; 
and each snowy-hued mansion stood in the midst of a plan- 
tation of sugar-canes or cocoanuts. It was also possible to 
distinguish large quantities of aloes, yuccas, and dragon- 
trees, which gave a right tropical aspect to the scene. We 
passed through what might be described as almost a sea of 
cocoanuts, so thickly did the fruit cover the surface of the 
sea with its great husks. At a distance the effect produced 
was very curious. One live creature came out as if to give 
us a welcome — a cormorant seated on a little raft, which I 
suppose he had found somewhere, made of two planks of 




Edw^WeUei- 



\e\vYork:Henry Holt & Co. 



THE 'THREE BOCAS: 95 



wood, or perhaps the lid of some old box, on which he was 
floating pleasantly and happily along on the waves. I 
wonder where he was off to ! We watched him a long time. 

The views were very similar in character as we passed 
spur after spur of the central ridge of mountains running 
down to the sea. It was not till we reached the ' Three Bocas ' 
that the scenery underwent a considerable change ; and then 
the shore became flatter, with bays full of islets, and bordered 
by pretty little villages and sugar and coffee-plantations. 




FIRST VIEW OF SOUTH AMERICA AND THE BOCAS 

The sea was curiously discoloured all along the coast, more 
especially when we turned the corner, so to speak, and went 
through the Boca de los Huevos. This discoloration is pro- 
duced by the muddy waters of the Orinoco, discharged from 
its many mouths on the coast of Venezuela, nearly a hundred 
miles distant, and bringing down alluvial deposits from the 
far-off Andes. I thought, as each little stick or weed went 
floating by, of the marvellous scenes and adventures through 
which it must have passed, and how I would give the world to 
behold what it had had no eyes to see. 

As straws show the way the wind blows, 
So sticks the way the current flows. 

I cannot say I went so far as to wish to be a stick sailing 
over the dark blue sea ; and, in fact, such an idea would not 



96 GULF OF PARIA. 



have been appropriate to the present occasion ; for the waters 
of the Gulf of Paria are not by any means deep blue, but 
muddy, something like the Thames above Greenwich, or like 
pea-soup, or perhaps still more like soup made from tomatoes, 
of which delicious vegetable there are no doubt plenty growing 
in the trim little gardens surrounding the cottages on the 
shore, on the contents of which we have gazed wistfully, but 
from a respectful distance, all the morning. 

It was no less a person than the great Columbus who gave 
the names which they now bear to the entrances to the Gulf 
of Paria — narrow passes or mouths (Bocas), the navigation 
of which is somewhat intricate. The channel which lies 
between the southern shores of Trinidad and the mainland 
is called the Boca del Serpiente, or Serpent's Mouth ; while 
the northern entrance to the gulf, called the Dragon's Mouth, 
or Boca del Drago, is subdivided into four channels, the 
Boca de los Monos, or Monkeys' Passage, the Boca de los 
Huevos, or Egg Passage, the Boca de los Navios, or Ship 
Passage, and the Boca Grande. We passed through the 
narrowest of the four — the banks of which were so close to us 
on either hand that it seemed as if the cocoanuts might fall 
on deck, or the giant reeds brush against the vessel's sides — 
noticing on our way the wreck of an unfortunate ice-ship, 
which had run on a rock and was gradually going to pieces. 
On emerging from the strait, and entering the Gulf of 
Paria, an enchanting scene met our delighted gaze. The 
sea, which was absolutely calm, had recovered its natural 
colours— dark blue where it was deep, light green where it 
bathed the edges of the pure white coral reefs or lazily lapped 
the shores of the verdant isles with which this glorious bay 
is studded. 

As we neared the town of Port of Spain, the capital of 
Trinidad, great excitement was caused throughout the yacht 
by the report — sent down from aloft, I believe, by Tom, who 



THE ' OLGA? 



97 



was acting as his own look-out man on this occasion, as on 
many others— that an English man-of-war was lying in the 
harbour. The fair white ensign could be seen fluttering at. 
the peak ; and soon it became visible to us also from the deck. 
The flag of Old England is always a pleasant sight, whether 
it be the red ensign borne by a merchant-man, hurrying. 

across the ocean, bearing news and 
produce from one far-off land to 
another ; the blue, carried- by a ship 
commanded by an officer of the 



€ 



Wm 



\\ 





SIGNAL-STATION AND WRECK tN THE 
BOCA DE LOS HUEVOS 



Royal Naval Reserve ; or the white 
ensign floating over the wooden — or, 
as I fear they must now be called, 
the iron — walls of Old England. 

After a short interval, a closer 
inspection of that which had aroused 
so much interest, and the aid of a friendly puff of wind, 
which displayed more plainly the drooping colours, enabled 
us to see that what we had taken for a British man-of-war 
was in reality a German frigate, the ' Olga,' on board which 

L 



PORT OF SPAIN. 



Prince Henry of Prussia, the eldest son of the Crown Prince 
of Germany and of our own Princess Pioyal — as we still love 
to call her — is serving as a lieutenant. 

At the pretty-little signal- station on the hill a good look- 
out was being kept, and soon our national flag was run up 
to welcome us ; in reply to which we made our number, and 
exchanged cordial greetings by signal. 

It was barely 1.30 p.m. when we dropped anchor in our 
first West Indian port. As soon as we had obtained pratique, 
we were boarded by the harbour-master, Mr. Norman, who 
was profuse in his offers of help, and shortly afterwards by 
Captain Bingham, aide-de-camp to the Governor, Sir Sanford 
Freeling, who was equally kind. A carriage was waiting at 
the landing to take us for a drive ; and Captain Bingham in- 
formed us that the Governor particularly wished Tom and me 
to dine with him that night at a quiet dinner, at the special 
request of Prince Henry. 

The heat was intense ; but as soon as we landed we — or 
at all events I individually — forgot all about the temperature, 
so many and so strange were the objects that met our view. 
There were negroes with their funny merry faces, long 
trailing dresses and swaying gait ; graceful little brown 
coolies of every caste and sect; and representatives of the 
large mulatto and yellow-faced population, of no particular 
race : — all of whom appeared to be quite as much amused 
with us as we were with them, which made us feel more 
easy in using our eyes and making the best of the oppor- 
tunity of gazing at all the strange sights that presented them- 
selves. I think the adjutant-birds (' Johnny crows,' as they 
call them here) impressed me as much as anything. Their 
odd, grotesque ways, their exceeding tameness, and the 
demurely methodical manner in which they perform the 
useful work of scavengers, are most entertaining. Then 
there was the vegetation. But to describe that is next to the 



THE SAVANNAH. 99 



impossible. We went up through an avenue of almond trees, 
passing numerous small gardens, each of which was filled 
with plants of what seemed to us a rare kind, growing in 
such affluence as would have delighted the heart of the 
Curator at Kew, including beautiful orange, red and purple 
crotons, dracsenas, hibiscus, allamandas, caladiums, begonias, 
and others. The colours of all the flowers shaded off from 
yellow, through red to brown, a mixture the effect of which 
was gorgeous, although the almost entire absence of any other 
colour was remarkable. Over our heads waved palms of 
every description, cocoanuts, breadfruits, jujubes, and hun- 
dreds of others ; while in the Savannah, which closely resem- 
bles an English park, herds of cattle grazed beneath the 
shade of huge silk-cotton trees and acacias (bella sombra). 
Like many of the population, the cattle were of a mixed 
breed, short-horns and Alderneys feeding peacefully beside 
Brahminee bulls, zebus, and queer little Hindoo cattle, some- 
thing like Brittany or Kerry cows. 

Most of the cows belong to coolies, who are the milkmen 
of Port of Spain. The Savannah itself extends to the foot of 
the mountains by which the town is partly surrounded. The 
Governor's residence is on one side surrounded by the Botanic 
Gardens ; on the opposite side is the hospital, while mer- 
chants' villas occupy favourable sites. 

We reached Government House just at dusk, when the 
fire-flies were beginning to shew us the light of their little 
lanterns and to flit about amongst the grass, where they 
looked as if some of the minor stars had come down to visit 
the earth. W T e joined our friends in the enjoyment of the 
cool air in the garden ; but were soon driven in by the night 
dews and mosquitoes. Booms had been placed at our disposal ; 
but we did not avail ourselves of them, except to dress, as we 
preferred sleeping on board the yacht. The luxury of a huge 
marble bath, so large that one could almost swim in it, and of 



FRESH WATER. 



the shower-bath attached to it, was very great, after the com- 
paratively short-allowance of fresh water to which we have 
been limited for the last three weeks. The intense heat 
has naturally made the economy we have been obliged to 
exercise in this matter rather trying ; but it has been neces- 
sary to set an example, for sailors are proverbially- careless, 
and do not think of the morrow, while land-servants can 
hardly be expected to understand, however often they may 

. be told, that 
there is a 
limit to the 
supply of fresh 
water even 
when sailing 
on the bosom 
of the salt 
ocean. Be- 
fore the tanks 
were locked 
up, and the 
water was 
carefully allowanced, four tons were 
consumed in the first three days after 
leaving Madeira, a rate of consumption which, considering that 
we only carry fourteen tons altogether, including the store in 
the reserve tanks, would soon have produced a water-famine 
in the ship ; whereupon the very men who had been respon- 
sible for the waste would doubtless have been the first to turn 
round and reproach us. Salt-water baths three times a day, 
followed by a complete change of clothing, we all found 
refreshing in the hot weather ; and some members of the 
party, who suffered a great deal from thirst, even went so far 
as to assert that a long immersion was almost equal in its 
effects to a hearty draught. 




GOVERNMENT HOUSE. 



Nobody could have received us more kindly than Sir 
Sanford Freeling and his daughter, Miss Freeling. His 
Eoyal Highness, too, was most pleasant ; and we were very 
glad to meet him again, and to be introduced to his officers, 
Captain the Count von Seckendorf, Lieutenant Fritze, and 
Dr. Thorner. We had a pleasant dinner in a charmingly 
airy room, far cooler than many a London dining-room in 
summer. The drawing-room was equally spacious and plea- 
sant. Except at the Straits Settlements (Singapore), I have 
never seen a finer Government House, nor one so well- 
arranged in every respect. 

I do not think, from what we have heard, that we have 
missed much in the way of scenery by not going to Barbadoes, 
our original destination when we left Madeira. The island on 
the whole is flat ; the highest land being situated in the north- 
eastern portion, which is bare and bleak. The principal — 
indeed, almost the sole — produce is sugar, of which large 
quantities are raised. I believe there are about five hundred 
sugar -works in operation at the present time, each of which, 
on an average, manufactures something like a thousand hogs- 
heads, besides molasses. Beautiful as they are at first, with 
their brilliant green foliage and feathery tufts like pampas- 
grass, there is something monotonous about fields of sugar- 
cane, when unrelieved by other vegetation. The roads in 
Barbadoes are dazzlingly white, and the light of the sun is so 
bright that, if one does not wish to be altogether blinded by 
the glare, blue spectacles are almost indispensable ; added to 
which the heat is far greater than it is in Trinidad. Still, in 
spite of all these disadvantages, there is a sort of romance 
about the very name of Barbadoes ; and one has heard and 
read so much about the island— including the lyrical assur- 
ance that ' all Barbadoes' bells shall ring ' — that it was with 
feelings of great regret that we allowed prudential considera- 
tions in regard to hurricanes to prevail, and decided to 



102 



LONGINGS FOR THE LAND. 



abandon the idea of visiting it. I think Marryat's descrip- 
tion, in ' Peter Simple,' of the ' dignity ball ' is alone almost 
sufficient to make one long to see something of the island for 
oneself, and to be initiated into the mysterious etiquette of its 
society. 

The rest of the party preferred to stay on shore while we 
went to Government House, and to take their chance of find- 
ing some dinner somewhere ; though they were assured that 
there was no hotel in the town fit to enter. I was quite able 
to sympathise with their feelings in this respect ; for after a 
long interval spent at sea, the scent of the land, even though 
it happen not to be very fragrant, is delightful to me. Not 
for any length of time, though. Don't imagine for a moment 
that I have the bad taste to prefer nasty things to nice, or 
bad things to good. I soon begin to long for a ' whiff of the 

briny ' again, a breath 
of the pure ocean air, 
ozone, and 
of 
after 
ibbed, 
con- 
hot 




GOVERNMENT HOUSE 



in the limited space of a small vessel, the yearning to be able 
to wander about on shore in the cool of the evening, to enjoy 



FLOATING LIGHTS. 103 

the land-breeze as it rustles through the leaves of tall trees, 
or softly whispers through bushes laden with sweet-scented 
flowers, creeping gently along the ground, and just fluttering 
the wings of the fire-flies, becomes intense. 

It was a heavenly night ; and the drive back to the shore 
and the moonlight row off to the yacht were not the least 
pleasant part of our day's experience. It almost seemed as if 
the stars, tired of flirting with the fairies on shore, had 
deserted the grassy slopes and fragrant groves to frolic with 
the mermaids, so bright was the surface of the sea with the 
floating lights of the medusae and noctilucae. 

Like mountain lake— as smooth and calm — 
The waves are hushed in dreamy sleep ; 
While perfumes float from isles of balm. 




H) 




DOG "TAX 



CHAPTER VII. 

TRINIDAD. 

Monday, October 29th. 

WE left the yacht at half- 
past five, having promised 
to be 
at the 
Botanic 
Gardens 
by se- 
ven. No 
sooner 
had we 
reached 
the shore 

than we were met by a Custom House officer, who demanded 
payment of ten shillings each on account of my two dogs- 
before he could allow either of them to land ; at the same time 




/TTTn 



V* 



QUEEN'S PARK. 105 



asserting that he should make a similar charge every day — 
or rather every time — that they came* ashore. Our remon- 
strances were vain, and we therefore had to deposit our 
twenty shillings, and to content ourselves with making a 
mental note of the occurrence ; while the two animals, which 
are not on the best of terms — being mutually jealous — ex- 
changed angry scowls and growls, as though each were accusing 
the other of being the cause of needless expense and trouble. 

Our first proceeding was to despatch telegrams to our kind 
friends in Barbadoes v and Tobago — who were no doubt still 
expecting us — to express our regret at having been compelled 
to pass by their hospitable shores. This was a simple matter 
enough ; but when we proposed to telegraph to England, to 
announce our arrival and to give sundry instructions respect- 
ing letters and packages, and some information as to our 
future movements, it was quite another affair. For a very 
short message we found the charge would be considerably 
over ten pounds, independent of the address, which would 
cost 5Z., the rate for each word being 13s. iorf. Tom posi- 
tively refused to pay any such sum for what was, after all, not 
an absolutely necessary message, though I fear its suppression 
may perhaps cause some little anxiety among our friends for 
a time, as they will now have to wait for letters. 

Telegrams and letters were soon forgotten, as we drove 
through the town and up past the Queen's Park, or Savannah, 
and saw the picturesque figures draped in brilliant colours that 
met our eyes at every step. It was the market-day of the 
coolies, who were pouring in from all parts of the island, with 
their curious grass-laden carts, or with prettily- shaped baskets, 
filled with fruits and vegetables, poised gracefully on their heads. 

When we arrived at the Botanic Gardens, near the 
entrance to the Valley of St. Ann, we were met by the 
Curator, Mr. Prestoe. He had hoped to see us before the 
heat of the day had become oppressive ; and although we 

M 



io6 GOVERNMENT HOUSE AND GARDEN*. 



were not much behind time, it was really very trying, even 
at this early hour. Government House, as I have already 
mentioned, is situated in the midst of the gardens, the splen- 
dours of which we could appreciate far better this morning 
than it had been possible to do last night, attractive as they 
had looked in the gloaming, when we arrived, and at a later 
hour, when we departed, in the golden light of the moon. 
The fierce glare of the ' garish sun ' disclosed many new and 
unexpected attractions, and developed a brilliancy and in- 
tensity of colour which I had never before realised or even 
dreamt of. The house itself, which is very extensive, is 
surrounded by spacious verandahs, and is completely covered 
by variegated creepers of graceful forms, bearing gorgeous 
blossoms of the most diversified hues. There were bougain- 
villseas of every shade, ranging from darkest purple to palest 
mauve ; trumpet-shaped bignoniads, varying from orange to 
yellow ; convolvuli of an infinite diversity of colour — purple, 
pink, blue, violet, scarlet, and yellow ; aristolochiae, with then- 
large cool-looking shady green leaves, which were most refresh- 
ing to the eyes, especially after gazing on the flaming groups 
of tropaeolums, the rich red, orange, and yellow blossoms of 
which formed a mass of colour, unrelieved by any visible 
leaves, that suggested the idea of a furnace-mouth, as it 
shimmered in the hot breeze, and seemed to cast back some 
of the heat and light which it had borrowed from the sun. 

Intermingled with all these were fragrant jasmines, of 
every sort and size, twining their tendrils and diffusing their 
sweet scent among the more gorgeous blossoms which sur- 
rounded them. Clusters of stephanotis, so long and thick 
that they looked more like ropes than plants, hung about 
everywhere, lightly swayed by the wind, and much affected 
by the brilliant humming-birds that hovered indefatigably in 
the sunshine, occasionally stopping to plunge their long 
slender bills into the very centre of the wax-like petals of the 



STEPHANOTIS AND HUMMING-BIRDS. 



107 



flowers, and to enjoy a long drink of the delicious honey con- 
tained in their snowy nectaries. Little recked they of the 
dazzling beauty of their own richly -jewelled coats, the bright 
prismatic hues of which surpassed in brilliancy the most price- 
less gems that ever adorned the diadem of earthly monarch. 

There were many other pink, blue, and yellow creepers, 
the names of which I do not remember, and which I shall 
not attempt to describe, though I shall ap- 
pend a list— made at the time with the kind 
assistance of Mr. Prestoe— for the benefit of 
those who care for such things. I wished I 
had a hundred eyes, like Argus, with which 
to see all that these wonderful gardens con- 
tained; as many ears, with which to listen 
to the interesting information given by Mr. 
Prestoe ; a mind capacious as the ocean to take 
it in, and wisdom to turn it to good account. 



TIM1T CAP 



Here stand the golden products 
Of every sun and clinie, 
And seem to live, like lovers' vows, 
In spite of space or time. 

And the air is full of odours 

Of exotic orchides ; 

And there hang the strangest blossoms 

From the strangest sort of trees. 

After the creepers, what attracted our attention most, I 
think, were the yellow allamandas, white gardenias, and 
hibiscus, tree-like in size, and of every conceivable variety of 
shape and colour. There were red, pink, and snowy-white 
blossoms ; double and single blossoms ; large round flowers ; 
small round flowers ; flat, long, small, and big flowers, growing 
in clusters or singly. One especially rare and beautiful 
variety was the schizopetalus, a bright delicately-veined flower, 
the edges of the petals of which (as the name implies) were 



108 BOTANIC GARDENS. 

deeply cut' or indented, the long, pink, delicately-fringed 
stamens terminating in an exquisitely-shaped point, some 
three or four inches long. ' 

The gardens— which were first established by the then 
Governor of the island, Sir Ealph Woodford, in 1820— are 
divided into three parts : the flower-garden, the arboretum 
and palmetum, and the orchard and ' economic ' ground, as it 
is called. The latter contains specimens of trees and plants 
the products of which are used in commerce, while in the two 
others are objects of a more ornamental character. In the 
orchard the nutmeg trees are one of the most striking features. 
There are also several varieties of coffee -plants, including 
what are called Hybrid Mocha, Liberian coffee, and crackling 
Creole coffee (Coffea arabica), as to the respective merits and 
value of which Mr. Prestoe has lately been making some very 
careful observations. 

In the nursery and extension grounds are crotons, bam- 
boos, mangoes, gum-trees, malacca apple-trees, candle-trees, 
plantains, vanilla, peach-palms and oil-palms, and cacao-plants. 
A good deal of attention is now being paid to the improved 
cultivation of cacao in Trinidad. The quantity exported 
annually is 13,000,000 lbs., worth about 500,000/. and it is 
thought that by a more careful and scientific system of culti- 
vation and subsequent treatment of the beans, the supply may 
be considerably increased. 

The walks about the gardens are well laid out, and the 
trees judiciously planted ; so that each variety is seen to the 
best advantage, except when occasionally interfered with by 
its neighbour's luxuriance. It was delightful to walk under 
the shade of rare and curious palms from every part of the 
globe, and beneath trees with some of which one was familiar 
both by name and by sight, such as the cinnamon, with its 
fragrant bark and its dark-green, ribbed, laurel-like leaves, 
and the nutmeg-tree, somewhat resembling the Portuguese 



CALA BA SB- TREE. 1 09 



laurel, weighed down by clusters of bright apricot-coloured 
fruit, just bursting and showing the crimson lace-like film, 
which encases the familiar nutmeg, and which, when dried, 
becomes the mace of commerce. The well-remembered fra- 
grance recalled vividly to our recollection the luxuriant gardens 
of Wock Wallak, as we rubbed the leaves in our hands and 
inhaled the spicy odour's. Further on we were transported to 
China by the sight of a tree somewhat resembling a large 
pomegranate, covered with queer three-cornered yellow fruit. 
Then there was a calabash-tree (Crescentia Citjete) with enor- 
mous gourds growing at the top and down to the extremities 
of very slender branches, which looked as if they must break 
beneath their weight. The hard wood-like shells of these 
gourds, which, fortunately are lighter than they look, are used 
by the inhabitants of these parts for almost every conceivable 
purpose of domestic economy. To a great extent they take 
the place of ordinary crockery ; and in many cases they are 
tastefully carved, stained and polished. I believe that kettles 
may even be made from them, which will stand the heat of 
the fire several times. The average height of the calabash- 
tree is about thirty feet ; and its flowers are variegated with 
purple, red and yellow, and green. 

The vegetable-ivory plant (Phytelephas macrocarpa) was 
another of the things that attracted a large share of attention. 
The tree itself is closely allied to the palm, and is not unlike 
some varieties of the latter that are more or less familiar 
to us. The nuts grow in clusters just above the roots : some- 
times even beneath the surface of the ground. Each nut 
contains six or eight kernels, which must at any time be in- 
digestible morsels ; although when young they are eaten 
eagerly by hogs, bears, and turkeys. When perfectly ripe 
they are as hard as ivory, and will take a high polish. 
They are now largely used to supply the place of the real 
article (at Birmingham they are manufactured into buttons), 



VEGETABLE IVORY. 



the scarcity of ivory having been in great measure caused by 
the wholesale and wanton destruction of big game by some of 
the so-called sportsmen of South and Central Africa. The 
leaves of the vegetable-ivory plant are used by the Indians as 
thatch for their huts. 

The Pandanus, perched on its stilt-like legs, and looking 
as if it had done something wrong and were running away 
as hard as it could, is likewise a remarkable plant. There 
are a good many species of Pandanus — something like thirty 
or more — among which are the Pandanus candelabrum, or 
chandelier tree, which is met with principally in Guiana, and 
the Pandanus utilis, or useful pandanus, which is a common 
wild plant in the Mauritius. Its leaves are made into sugar- 
sacks, and also into those little bags in which poultry or fish 
are sometimes carried in England. 

One very large spreading tree was pointed out to us as the 
Bertholletia excelsa, which bears the excellent and familiar 
Brazil nut. The many-cornered, polyhedral, wrinkled brown 
objects we are so accustomed to see in an independent condi- 
tion, are packed away — or rather grow with the utmost 
mathematical precision— inside an exceedingly hard shell, 
about as big as a cocoa-nut without its exterior covering. 
There is a softer place at one end, which, when the nuts are 
ripe, bursts open, the contents being scattered on the ground. 
The monkeys are aware of this peculiarity of the vegetable 
in question ; and being excessively fond of the nuts, they not 
unfrequently get caught by thrusting their paws into the 
opening shell before it has quite reached the bursting stage, 
and being unable to withdraw them again. It frequently 
happens that the entire nut, which is both heavy and hard, 
falls from the tree, perhaps from a height of ioo or even 150 
feet, without bursting; in view of which circumstance it is 
considered dangerous to go into forests where the trees grow 
and the nuts are ripening, until the season is over. There are 



BRAZIL-NUT TREE. 



in 



large forests of these trees on the banks of the Amazon, the 
Bio Negro, and the Orinoco, where, after the fruits have 
fallen, they are collected 
into heaps by troops of 




GROUP OF VEGETATION" 



Indians, called castan- 
hieros ; the nuts that 
have not already burst 
being split open with 
axes. They are then sent to Para for exportation, and are 
sometimes called Para nuts. 

The tree which bears the sapucaia nut (Lecythis Zabucajo), 
is entirely different to the Brazil-nut tree, although its produce 
is very similar in nearly every respect. The trees attain an 
average height of about eighty feet, their tops expanding 



112 FOOD-PRODUCING TREES. 

into a large mass of dark-green glossy foliage. The outer 
shells in which the nuts grow are about six inches in diameter, 
and have a sort of lid at the top, which opens and allows the 
ripe contents to escape. Both Brazil nuts and sapucaia nuts 
are considered extremely nourishing and wholesome in Trini- 
dad, and are much used as an article of food, especially in 
the mountains, where the oily nature of the nuts supplies 
the place of animal food, which is difficult to procure, and 
where the natives have not the resource of the inhabitants of 
the coast, in the way of an abundance of fish. The souari or 
butter-nuts, the produce of the Caryocar nuciferum, contains 
even more oleaginous matter. The natives crush them and 
make from the oil or milk a stuff called ' ghee,' which they 
sell in the market, and which is almost undistinguishable 
from bad butter. 

But perhaps the most remarkable of the order of Lecy- 
thidacece to which our attention was directed was the so-called 
' Cannon-ball tree ' (Couroupita guianensis) with its straight 
stem, some fifty or sixty feet in height, supporting its elm-like 
head. It has no lateral branches ; but all down its stem 
hang what look like giant creepers; though they are really 
the leaf-bearing and the fruit and flower-bearing branches, 
which are quite distinct. The long spikes of scarlet flowers, 
and their curious hood-shaped centre — which has been com- 
pared to the fist of a new-born babe, with a little pink hood 
drawn over it — are very pretty and effective. The shells of 
the cannon-ball fruit are used as drinking- vessels ; and the 
pulp, when perfectly fresh, has a pleasant flavour. 

The milk-tree (Tanghinia lactaria) yields a sap in colour 
and taste like milk, if drunk while fresh. The blood-tree 
(Croton gossypifolium), when wounded, sends forth a juice like 
blood : -a sort of indiarubber-like fluid, which is used as a 
kind of glue and varnish. 

Of course there were many other equally wonderful trees 



HOTEL DE FRANCE. 113 

besides those which I have attempted to describe ; but I must 
not make my book a mere sylva sylvarum. 

After a pleasant but exhausting visit of three hours to 
the gardens, and some welcome refreshment at Government 
House, in the shape of limes, soda-water, and ice, we returned 
to town to breakfast at the hotel, the view from the verandah 
of which was most interesting. Late as was the hour, high 
as was the sun, and fierce the heat of his burning rays, the 
market was not yet quite over ; and there were a good many 
coolies still to be seen lolling about and gossiping under the 
shade of the splendid double avenue of almond trees that 
extends through the whole length of the town. There were 
a few negroes, but not many — just enough to add a little 
shade and to throw up the brilliancy of the coloured dresses 
and the tones of the various complexions. The Hotel de 
France, where those of our party who had remained ashore 
after we left them last night had dined comfortably, main- 
tained its reputation to-day. We had an excellent breakfast, 
good wine, and plenty of ice and fruit, served in a nice cool 
room by the most civil and obliging of negro waiters. The 
proprietress married many years ago a French coiffeur, who, 
being unable to exist away from his beloved boulevards, 
returned in due course to Paris, leaving Madame, who could 
not tear herself from her daughter, to attend to the business. 
The daughter is married to a French Creole, who does not 
appear to do much more than lounge about and smoke all 
day, while the wife looks after a sweet little white-faced baby, 
that looks as delicate and fragile as a lily. Madame devotes 
herself to the management of the house, cellar, and table- 
department ; while her sister cooks dainty dishes, fit to set 
before a king. The result of their combined efforts and good 
management is that a comfortable hotel is provided for the 
benefit of all travellers to Puerto d'Espana, where formerly 
none existed, and where chance visitors were entirely depen- 

N 



U4 



HOTEL FARE. 



dent upon the sometimes severely-taxed hospitality of the 
residents. 

As affording some idea of the culinary resources of the 
establishment, and of the food obtainable in Trinidad, I 
append the menu of our repast : — 



A \ 



\- 



H0T£U &*, VRANCE 

PORT <4 .^PMN 

\\l.\\\) d^VS) OCT 

QUEUE DE BIUF. 

KING FISH. 

BCUF BOUILLI. PIGEONS SAUltS. 

COTELETTES DE MOUTON GRILLEES. 

POULET rOtI. SALADE. 

GIGOT DE MOUTON. 

SWEET POTATOES. ALLIGATOR PEARS. 

STEWED PLANTAINS. 

CEUFS A LA NEIGE, A LA VANILLE. 

PAPAWS, MELONS, 
SHADDOCKS, ORANGES, BANANAS. 

GLACE AU COCOA. 





COOLIES. 115 

After a brief interval of rest, which yet was scarcely 
repose — for there was so much that was strange and new to 
see, in whichever direction one looked, that one's mind was 
actively occupied all the time — we started for the Blue Basin, 
an excursion which affords a high idea of the exquisite beauty 
of Trinidad. On the road we met an immense number of 
coolies, both men and women : the latter wearing enormous 
bangles, earrings, and — not by any means least in point of 
size or ugliness — great nose rings ; or in some cases a so-called 
ornament that looked like a little nail driven into the side of 
the nose, with either a ruby or an emerald set in its head. 
The coolie men spend all their money in jewellery for their 
women, which thus becomes their sole fortune ; and if they 
become poor, the ornaments are at once sold, though this 
rarely happens. What far more frequently occurs is that the 
woman runs away, jewellery and all ; to somebody else ; and 
then there is either a free fight, or the man, woman, and any- 
one else who happens to be in the way, are stabbed surrep- 
titiously in the dead of the night, and there is an inquest and 
perhaps a trial for murder. 

We were able to appreciate much better the beauty and 
interest of the fresh forms of vegetation that met our view, 
owing to Mr. Prestoe's lucid explanations and instruction of 
this morning; and it was pleasant to be able to make more 
intelligent remarks respecting them than it had hitherto been 
in our power to do, and to refer to some of the trees, shrubs, 
and creepers which we were continually passing by their 
proper names, instead of being limited to such remarks as, 
' Oh, look at that lovely yellow orchid ; or that brilliant red 
plant ! Did you ever see such a strange thing ? What can 
that brown and red flower be ? ' — and so forth. I scarcely 
know what I admired most, where everything was so novel 
and attractive. The graceful balisiers {Carina indica), with 
their eight- and ten-feet-long spikes of scarlet oval cup-like 



n6 CACAO TREE. 



flowers, just edged with yellow, in shape something like the 
prow of a Eoman galley, such as may be seen represented on 
antique gold and silver plate, were perhaps the most remark- 
able. The callisias, with their brilliant leaves and purple 
edges, were also, to me, especially beautiful. Each cup or 
flower contains from three to four table-spoonfuls of water : — 
a welcome provision in a thirsty land. The pepper-plants of 
various kin els, and the cacao tree (Theobroma Cacao), from 
which the cocoa and chocolate of commerce are made — not 
from the cocoa-nut palm, as many people imagine — were 
also very lovely. The latter is rather a large tree, not 
unlike a Spanish chestnut, with hollow pods resembling 
capsicums, of every colour, from palest yellow to darkest 
crimson, growing out of the stem and branches, and is. 
altogether peculiar in appearance. We passed through 
vast groves of these trees, and through extensive planta- 
tions of sugar-canes, the huge heads of which now look 
like extra-beautiful pampas-grass, waving in the light tropical 
breeze. 

As we proceeded, the road got worse and worse, till at last 
we passed behind the signal- station that had waved us so 
kind a welcome when we first entered the port ; and then 
meandered about through woods, down dales, up hills, over 
rocks, and across streams, till we reached Mr. Fuller's wooden 
house, where we found him awaiting us with some ponies to 
carry us the remainder of our way. He had also provided 
baskets of the most delicious and sweetest green oranges of 
the mandarin and larger descriptions, in order that we might 
refresh ourselves before we started. 

A picturesque ride of about a mile, along a very narrow 
slippery path, by the side of a sparkling stream, through the 
tangle of an almost impenetrable virgin forest of tropical 
trees and creepers, brought us at last to the Blue Basin, 
where, on turning a corner in the wood, a fairylike scene 



BLUE BASIN. 



U7 









BLUE BASIN 


%' ' 




\ 


FALLS 


W^m 









suddenly met our view. In the centre of a thickly wooded 
amphitheatre, profusely bedecked with ferns, was a very small 
blue lake, of considerable depth, bordered by the most bril- 
liant taniers (Caladium sagittcefolium), something like arums, 
among which flitted humming-birds and blue butterflies: 
while in the centre 
from the top of an 
abrupt precipice, 
some fifty or sixty 
feet in height, a 
cascade fell into 
the basin beneath, 
which was full of fish. 

We would willingly 
have lingered to enjoy 
the attractions of this de- 
lightfully romantic scene : 
hut daylight now began to 
fade, and we were warned 
that it would be prudent 
to retrace our steps before 
it became absolutely dark. 
There was not sufficient 
light to ride by ; and we 
were therefore obliged to 
pick our way as best we 
could back to Mr. Fuller's 

hospitable mansion, where he showed us his wonderful col- 
lection of stuffed birds, which includes specimens of nearly 
all the varieties found in the island. I believe that about 
300 different, species have been observed in Trinidad, the 
ornithology of which differs considerably from that of the 
other West India islands. The insects of the island are very 
numerous ; and the birds which feed upon them are therefore 




u8 BIRDS OF TRINIDAD. 

largely represe»ted. It would be impossible to enumerate 
all the specimens shown to us by Mr. Fuller, but they 
included falcons, goshawks, vultures (or corbeaux), owls, 
shrikes, fly-catchers, merles (or blackbirds), a few varieties 
of warblers, swallows, grosbeaks, bullfinches, starlings, hum- 
ming-birds — of which Trinidad boasts eighteen species — 
kingfishers, woodpeckers, toucans, macaws, parrots, paro- 
quets, couroucoui, pigeons, plovers, herons, curlews, che- 
valiers, rails, water-hens, sea-swallows, pelicans, and ducks. 
Vultures, or corbeaux, swarm in the town of Port of Spain, 
where they perform the very useful office of scavengers, 
watching eagerly from the roofs of the houses and other 
points of vantage for the garbage which may fall in the street. 
There are two species of vultures in Trinidad, the black- 
headed (Vultur papa), known as 'the king of the corbeaux,' 
and the red-headed (Vultur urubu), called ' the governor of the 
corbeaux.' The latter is never met with in towns, while the 
former is, as a rule, only to be seen in the streets ; though, 
whenever, in the country, some particularly savoury object 
attracts attention, both kinds assemble to enjoy it. Game is 
tolerably plentiful in the island ; but it is very inferior in 
flavour to what we are accustomed to at home. Mr. Fuller 
also showed us an enormous centipede, ten inches long, and 
some live agoutis (Chloromys acuti), curious little beasts, feed- 
ing on fruits and roots. 

We had a most delightful drive back through the fragrant 
forest, the fields of waving sugar-canes, and .the tropical 
gardens, illumined by the light of the stars, the glimmer of 
the fire-flies, and the occasional flicker of a coolie's fire. It 
was rather late when we arrived at Government House ; and 
we had not much time to luxuriate in our big baths, or to 
waste on our toilette. The dinner was pleasant, and we 
enjoyed some delightful music afterwards, for which the large 
rooms, without carpets, hangings, or curtains of any kind, 



DOG TAX. 119 

were admirably adapted, and to which full justice was done 
by a new piano, just arrived from Erard's. 

I was glad to learn that the conscience of the black custom- 
house officer, who had made the trouble about the dogs this 
morning, had afterwards pricked him. Mature reflection 
seems to have convinced him that his most prudent course 
was to report his own conduct to the Governor, who had 
severely reprimanded him for his over-officiousness, and had 
desired him to return my sovereign at once. It is only fair 
to add that he was not entirely without justification; inas- 
much as it appears that Barbadoes is more or less overrun 
with dogs and curs of all sorts, which have an unfortunate 
disposition to go mad, and that a tax has been imposed on 
all representatives of the canine species, with a view of di- 
minishing their number. The result has been that many dogs 
have been shipped off to Trinidad, where an impost of ten 
shillings per head has been established, with a view of check- 
ing the influx of the unwelcome guests. The rule does not, 
however, apply to the casual visitor, travelling for pleasure 
and profit, like our canine pets, and the custom-house officer 
was therefore guilty of an error of judgment in this respect. 

It was late before we reached the yacht ; but somehow, in 
these climates, the night is far pleasanter than the day, and 
one gets into the habit of going to bed late and rising early, 
taking perhaps a siesta in the afternoon — when one has time 
to do so, which, from my own experience, is not often the case. 

Truly a real tropical night is one of the things which 
makes life worth living, whatever may be the state of the 
liver. Gladly would I do and suffer much for one brief hour's 
enjoyment of such a scene as this, when back again among 
the fogs and frosts of old England. Well do I know how 
much and how often I have longed to live once again those 
glorious nights of seven years ago in the South Pacific ; 
but, alas ! they are among the things that are no more. 



120 MARKET. 

Tuesday, October 30th. — We started at an early hour this 
morning to' visit the market, with which I was some- 
what disappointed; although it was a novel and animated 
scene, and noisy enough to deafen anybody. There were, 
however, not so many out-of-the-way things for sale on the 
stalls as I had expected to find. What impressed me most 
was the rivalry and evident want of co-operation that existed 
among the vendors ; and the droll little heaps, and dabs, 
and snippets in which everything was sold. Each peasant 
proprietor or owner of a hut and a patch of ground of the 
smallest dimensions, seemed to have brought in the produce 
thereof for sale, independently of the aid of any middle-man ; 
so that we saw the most insignificant piles of capsicums or 
chillies, oranges, mangoes, carrots, salad, sugar-apples, cheri- 
moyers, pine-apples, and other fruits and vegetables, offered 
for sale, by at least twenty vociferating dealers, standing in a 
row. The coolie traders, with their dark-brown skins, fine 
smooth black hair, and lithe figures swathed in bright-coloured 
shawls, their arms and legs heavy with jewelry, the produce 
of their spouses' wealth, were quiet and graceful in voice and 
action ; and presented a striking contrast to the buxom black 
negresses, with their thick lips, gay turbans, merry laughter, 
and somewhat aggressive curiosity. 

Our appearance seemed, as usual, to afford as much 
interest and amusement as we ourselves derived from the 
scene, quite the most attractive and wonderful member of our 
party evidently being my esteemed black poodle, which was 
evidently regarded by the negroes as a sort of very distant 
relation ; while his personal peculiarities — particularly the 
tufts or knobs on his tail — delighted them immensely, judging 
from the loud guffaws, ' yah yahs,' and other admiring ex- 
clamations with which he was greeted, as they hopped about, 
almost on all fours, to have a good look at him, and to get 
their eyes on the same level with his. 



CHINESE SHOPS. 



From the market we went to one or two shops, none of 
which were particularly interesting, except a Chinese shop, 
the interior of which at once transported us back to Canton 
or Hong Kong. Every article was of Chinese manufacture ; 
and the traders could speak but few words of English. 
There was nothing specially novel or tempting to me in 
the stock itself; but to those who had not visited the 
Middle Kingdom there was much to astonish, amuse, and 
attract. 

Just before leaving the yacht, we had been surprised by 
the announcement that Mr. Crampton had come on board to 
call upon us. It was very pleasant to meet an old friend 
from England so unexpectedly. He is rfbw in Trinidad on 
business connected with a gold mine on the banks of the 
Orinoco, of which he is the manager. He must have rather 
a rough time of it, I should think, living there all alone, 
without any sort of congenial person to speak to. He seems 
very well and happy, 
however, and to have 

his heart in his >^^B Bll^ 

work. He afterwards 
accompanied us on 
several of our excur- 
sions, and gave us a 
great deal of useful 
information. 

We had to hurry 
back to the yacht to 
receive the Governor 
and Miss Freeling, 
and Prince -Henry of 
Prussia, who arrived 

in due course. After breakfast, and a pleasant interval spent 
beneath the awning of the ' Sunbeam,' we all paid a visit 

o 




PRINCE HENRY OF PRUSSIA 



PRINCE HENRY OF PRUSSIA. 



to the ' Olga.' Prince Henry is a practical seaman. As a 
lieutenant, he takes charge of a watch, and carries on all the 
drills and exercises. He appears to be a general favourite 
with his shipmates, and Captain von Seckendorf says that 
he is quite the hardest worker on board and sets an excellent 
example to his youthful companions. At the same time he is 
thoroughly capable of enjoying all the amusements that come 
in his way, and of appreciating everything that he sees. The 
other officers of the ship are accomplished gentlemen, and 
both they and the entire crew of the ' Olga ' look wonderfully 
healthy and in good case, considering how long they have 
been in these hot climates. 

We remained some time on board, listening to the ex- 
cellent band and taking afternoon tea; and in the cool of 
the evening we again landed and dined at the Hotel de 
France. 

It was in 1498 that Columbus, in the course of his third 
expedition across the Atlantic, discovered the island of Trini- 
dad, the mouths of the Orinoco — which river he imagined to 
spring from the Tree of Life in the midst of the Garden of 
Eden — and the Gulf of Paria, the finest harbour in the West 
Indies. 

On the Constance Estate, at Icacos, is an old anchor, 
which is said to have originally formed part of the equipment 
of one of the ships commanded by the great navigator. 
It is an interesting relic, in an excellent state of preserva- 
tion, although it looks somewhat forlorn and out-of-place in 
its present position. 

Trinidad, although frequently visited by vessels, for the 
purpose of obtaining wood and water, and too often with the 
object of capturing slaves, was not colonised until nearly a 
hundred years subsequent to its discovery. It was held by 
the Spaniards —with the exception of a short interval of 
conquest by the French — until 1 797, when it became for the 



COLUMBUS'S ANCHOR. 



123 



first time part of the British possessions in the West Indies, 
having been captured by a force of 7000 men, under the 
command of General Abercrombie. 




On an island's winding shore, 
There for ages long it lay 
At the bottom of a bay. 




Wednesday, October 31st. 

E got under way at daybreak 
and steamed off to the land- 
ing-place for La Brea, whence we 
were to visit the far-famed Pitch 
Lake of Trinidad. At five o'clock 
we again anchored ; and about an 
hour later proceeded to land in the 
boat, which I steered. This was 
a somewhat difficult task, for the 
shore looked like a ' Slough of 
Despond,' being composed entirely 
of pitch, while the few people who 
appeared waved advice and instruc- 
tions of the most conflicting and 
inconsistent character as to landing ; so that no sooner had 
I given heed to the energetic gestures of an individual who 
appeared to possess a certain amount of authority, and 
had turned the boat's head in one direction, than the 



PITCH LAKE. 125 



equally frantic gesticulations of a person of apparently 
superior importance seemed to indicate that we were all 
doomed to certain destruction. At last, however, with the 
aid of Mr. Macarthy, the manager of the pitch-works, we 
succeeded in effecting a landing in a very sticky place, 
where we climbed into some of the roughest of mule-carts, 
that had been provided for our transport, and in which 
chairs had been temporarily placed. Each cart was drawn 
by four strong mules harnessed in Indian file ; but the road 
was rough, and the driver had little or no control over his 
cattle, and, as they showed a desire to proceed in different 
directions, it may be imagined that the jolting was great and 
our progress slow. 

On either side of the road was a hedge, or rather wall, of 
what to us were interesting, though doubtless to dwellers in 
the tropics comparatively common, trees, among which were 
numerous little huts, each standing in its own small patch of 
ground, full of equally strange and curious fruit and flowers, 
such as bananas, arrowroot, yams, manioca, and the malacca 
apple with its bright magenta flowers, in shape not unlike 
long bottle-bushes. 

The nearer we approached to the lake the more pitchy 
did the ground become. We passed through vegetation not 
unlike a patch of British fern suddenly transferred to a tem- 
perature of about fifty degrees above what it is accustomed 
to, and thus, as it were, ' tropicalised.' The Pitch Lake it- 
self was an extraordinary, and to my mind, a hideous-looking 
place, fully justifying its title — a lake of thick pitch, very like 
solid black mud, intersected by channels, holes, and crevices 
filled with water. In one spot, which was a little harder than 
the rest, men were busily employed in digging out what 
appeared to be huge blocks of asphalte, which were placed on 
barrows and transferred to carts for transportation to the 
boiling-house. 



326 CROSSING THE LAKE. 

Quale nelT Arzana de' Viniziani 

Bolle 1' inverno la tenace pece, 

A rirnpalmar li legni lor non sani, 
Che navicar non ponno ; e 'n quella vece 

Chi fa suo legno nuovo, e chi ristoppa 

Le coste a quel che piu viaggi fece ; 
Chi ribatte da proda e chi da poppa ; 

Altri fa remi, ed altri volge sarte ; 

Chi terzeruolo ed artimon rhitoppa ; 
Tal, non per fuoco, nia per divina arte, 

Bollia laggiuso una pegola spessa, 1 

Che 'nviscava la ripa d' ogni parte. 

Dante, Inferno, xxi. 7-18. 

We descended from our conveyances ; and, armed with 
long sticks like alpenstocks, and accompanied by some dozen 
or twenty negroes carrying planks, we proceeded to cross the 
lake, an expedition not unattended with difficulty,, the width 
of the crevices being sometimes considerably greater than the 
length of the planks on which we were to perform the some- 
what perilous passage, and the negroes having to stand up to 
their waists or necks in the water in order to support them 
as best they could while we stepped across. The dogs seemed 
to enjoy the fun immensely ; especially when, as frequently 
happened, some merry negro pushed them off the plank they 
were treading so daintily, into the water beneath, giving 
them a series of little baths which I rather envied them, con- 
sidering the heat of the morning. We were fortunate, how- 
ever, in the fact that the sky was somewhat overcast, and 
that there was no sun visible ; otherwise the glow from this 

1 As in the Arsenal of the Venetians 
Boils in the winter the tenacious pitch 
To smear their unsound vessels o'er again, 
For "sail they cannot ; and instead thereof 
One makes his vessel new, and one recaulks 
The ribs df that which many a voyage has made ; 
One hammers at the prow, one at the stern, 
This one makes oars, and that one cordage twists, 
Another mends the mainsail and the mizzen ; 
Thus, not by fire, but by the art divine, 
Was boiling down below there a dense pitch 
Which upon every side the bank belimed. 



PLANK BRIDGE. 



127 



black, Stygian area would have been the reverse of agreeable. 
Even as it was, the fumes of the sulphuretted hydrogen were 
almost overpowering, where the pitch or petroleum came 
bubbling up from somewhere in the nether world, bringing 
with it the most volcanic smells as a kind of token of what 

was going on 
down below. 
So mixed was 
the pitch with 
oil and water, 
that it was 
easy to pick 
it up in one's 
hand and 
knead it into 
a ball like 
bread ; and, 
what was still 
more curious, 
one could defy 
the truth of 
adage and touch 



the old 

pitch without being denied. 

The children and I amused 

ourselves by making several 
balls of pitch; and yet our fingers remained as clean as 
possible. In some places the condition of the black mass 
over which we were passing was almost alarming; for if 
we stood still for a moment we began to sink deeply into 
the mud, and to feel hotter and hotter, till it seemed as 
if we might all be gradually sucked into one of these little 
tar-fountains, and remain there for the rest of our natural 
lives. 

It took us about two hours to cross the lake, stopping at 




128 THE ' TREE OF LIFE: 

various islands on the way, and collecting many curious plants. 
We passed close to the grove of Moriche palms referred to in 
Kingsley's ' At Last,' but had not time for a nearer inspection. 
' The Tamanacs, according to Humboldt, say that when a man 
and woman survived that great deluge which the Mexicans 
call the age of water, they cast behind them, over their heads, 
the fruits of the Moriche palm (as Deucalion and Pyrrha cast 
stones) and saw the seeds in them produce men and women, 
who re-peopled the earth. No wonder, indeed, that certain 
tribes look on this tree as sacred, or that the missionaries 
should have named it the " Tree of Life." ' We could hear the 
parrots screeching, and the monkeys screaming and chatter- 
ing ; but could not see anything of great interest ; except a 
curious tree called a Metapalos (something like a very poor 
camellia), a plant called by the natives the Milk-plant, bear- 
ing a pretty red flower like a Turk's head, and some ananas, 
growing, after the manner of air-plants, on the stems of other 
trees. The Groo-Groo palms (Aci-ocomia) we also saw for the 
first time on this occasion. On both shores of the lake 
women were washing clothes and men were digging out pitch 
close to the borders, where it had become sufficiently hard. 
It was evident that a small colony of people derived their 
living from the lake and its surroundings — and a very good 
living, too, according to the statement of Mr. McCarthy's 
agent : the work being not nearly so unpleasant as the de- 
scriptions which I had previously read had led me to believe. 
The ordinary wages of the men average from 24s. to 30s. a 
week; while those who choose to work a little harder than 
usual can easily earn two dollars a day. In this prolific 
climate, where all that is absolutely necessary to life comes 
ready to hand, one or two shillings a week would be sufficient 
to support these labourers ; and they could easily clothe 
themselves for a pound or two a year. As a matter of fact, 
however, I am afraid that drink and pleasure consume a 



PITCH MANUFACTURES. 129 



considerable proportion of their earnings ; for when they have 
any money in their pockets, they cannot resist going off for a 
' spree ' and buying all sorts of things for which they have not 
the slightest use, such as tall hats— or 'stove-pipes,' as they 
love to call them — and black coats - which they never after- 
wards look at, much less wear — and other ridiculous things. 

The sun was now getting high in the heavens, and occa- 
sionally shining fiercely through the clouds ; and we were glad 
to get off the black glistening surface of the Pitch Lake, and 
to regain the very comparative repose — for the jolting was 
frightful — of our cart once more. On our way back to the 
shore we met Tom, who had remained on board the yacht this 
morning, and who was now walking up to see the boiler works, 
belonging to a company, where the raw pitch is transformed 
into asphalte suitable for road-paving and other purposes, and 
where the most beautiful snowy-white candles imaginable are 
also produced from the very black and uninviting-looking 
compound of which the lake is composed. 

While resting under the shade of a sort of small venta, 
and refreshing myself with some oranges, I heard a little 
noise above me, and, to my astonishment, saw four bright 
green and blue lories, seated in a row on a beam which 
supported the thatch of the roof- tree. They seemed as tame 
as possible, ate out of my hand, and chattered volubly in 
Spanish. The cottage was overshadowed by a strychnine-tree 
and a tamarind, of which I collected some of the seeds. 

We went on board to breakfast, and steamed slowly along 
the coast, in order to see some of its beauties, which the in- 
habitants of the island apparently think more of than we do, 
the main feature being what they here call cocal plantations, 
or groves of .cocoa-nut trees, almost as fine as those of the 
South Sea Islands. 

We had not time to go as far as Point Icacos, and had to 
return to San Fernando, the second principal town of Trini- 

p 



SUGAR-MAKING. 



dad, in order to go, by the special train that had been provided 
for us, to the sugar mine at Santa Maddalena. The railway 
was a curious little single line, passing through sugar-estates 
for almost the entire distance, with nothing to break the 
monotony of the scene but a few palm-trees, clumps of bam- 
boos, or dead trees, in sat perched, like black 
which ' Johnnie Crows ' ^ statues. 




Arrived at Santa ~ v the very civil mana- 

Maddalena, we were santa maddalexa ger of the works, who 
received by Mr. Abel, showed and explained 

to us the whole process of sugar-making from beginning to 
end. The canes are brought up in railway-trucks, and are 
then passed between a succession of rollers to be crushed ; 
the women who perform the operation of feeding the rollers 
with canes guiding the latter as much by means of their 
feet as of their hands. The canes undergo a great deal of 
crushing and several subsequent boiling processes ; the syrup 
being pumped up and down in order to crystallise it and to 
get rid of the molasses ; until finally what a few minutes 
before we had seen enter in the form of whole sugar-canes 
came out looking exactly like coffee-sugar ; the refuse, by 
a most ingenious arrangement of machinery, going to feed 



PROCESSION OF ANTS. 



131 



the furnaces. The heat of the boiling-houses was frightful, 
and the smell of rum and molasses quite overpowering ; so 
that I was thankful when I could feel that we had done our 
duty and had seen the entire process of sugar-making from 
beginning to end ; although doubtless the raw material under- 
goes some further refining or cleansing before it is lit for the 
European market. 

The manager's house is well situated on an eminence com- 
manding a good view of the surrounding country, and stands 
111 the midst of a beautiful garden, divided only from the 
adjacent fields by hedges of pomegranates and roses. The 
large trees of hibiscus were covered with the finest flowers of 
the kind that I have ever seen : while the croton, stephanotis, 
tuberoses, and a Brazilian shrub, with pretty yellow flowers 
like jasmine and primrose-coloured bracts, the name of which 
I do not know, were so lovely as to be more like a dream than 
anything real. 

On our way down the hill to the 
shore we came across a procession of 
parasol-ants ; curious little insects of 
which I had often read, but which I 
had never seen before. One string of 
them was proceeding steadily along 
the steep road towards the pome- 
granate and peach trees, while 
another stream was returning in 
the opposite direction. Arrived at 
the. trees, each ant bit off a por- 
tion of one of the leaves and then 
turned round and marched back 
again, carrying his burden over his 
head, as if it were in reality a shelter 
from the sun instead of a part of his own 
building materials that he was carrying off. 




T32 ' CRAZY ANT: 



It has been said that ' Barbadoes abounds in lizards ; 
Guiana is overrun with frogs; but Trinidad above all is re- 
markable for the number and variety of its communities of 




TARASOL AXTS 



ants.' About twenty distinct species are well known ; but 
there are probably several others besides. Some frequent 
towns and houses ; others are only to be met with in the 
woods. The length of their bodies is in some cases as much 
as three-quarters of an inch. The stinging black ant — one 
of the kind to be found in houses —is perhaps the most 
abundant. They build their nests either underground or at 
the roots of plants, which they generally kill. The black 
ants are very fierce, and will rush out and sting severely 
anyone who happens to be unfortunate enough to disturb 
them. There is also a red stinging-ant, which is much 
smaller, but the sting of which produces a very uncomfortable 
burning and itching sensation, something like the stinging of 
a nettle. They have a great partiality for sugar and olive-oil, 
and make very short work of a store of those articles if they 
have the chance of doing so. Another curious variety is 
appropriately called the ' crazy ant.' He always seems to 
be in a violent hurry, and yet to be unable to make up his 
mind which way he wants to go, moving forwards, backwards, 
and sidewards in the most purposeless and insane manner. 
M. de Yerteuil remarks that they are particularly fond of 
syrup and sugar ; but that they are also carnivorous. 
'Nothing is. more amusing,' he says, ' than to observe thou- 
sands of them carrying along large cockroaches, worms, or 
other dead insects. If they encounter a crawling worm, 



'HUNTER- ANT: 



133 



immediate notice is circulated among the tribe, and in a 
short time hundreds of them march to the attack ; their huge 
adversary rolls and contracts in self-defence, but, although 
tossed about, the ants hold fast ; fresh recruits come to the 
rescue ; and, after a struggle of more than half an hour, the 
giant is subdued and carried to the nest, part of the host 
pulling forwards, and part raising up, so as to lighten the 
draft. Once arrived at the entrance of the nest, which is 
generally small, and cannot admit the booty, the ants cut 
their prey into small pieces, which they carry down, one 
only, or a dozen or more, taking charge of each piece, accord- 
ing to the size. The crazy ants neither bite nor sting.' 

The most formidable of these insects appears to be the 
'hunter-ant,' or fourmi chasseuse, whose sting is rather a 
serious matter. They go about in armies or tribes, arranged 
in the most regular and systematic manner, and kill every 
living thing that happens to be in the line of march, such as 
young birds, scorpions, crickets, cockroaches, and other small 
creatures. Sometimes they even enter houses, where they 
destroy rats, mice, and other vermin. They must be wonder- 
fully intelligent creatures, to judge from some of their pro- 
ceedings. For instance, when, in the course of one of their 
forays, they come to a rivulet which they wish to cross, they 
contrive to form a sort of suspension-bridge, composed of their 
own bodies, over which the remainder of the army passes. 

The parasol-ants we saw to-day do not sting, but bite, and 
are quite capable of using their sharply-pointed saw-like man- 
dibles with considerable effect. They are most destructive to 
vegetation ; but are rather delicate in their tastes, preferring 
particular plants, such as the young cacao, the orange-tree, 
yam, and manioca. Still, nothing seems to come amiss to 
them, and it is only by constant vigilance that roses, vines, 
and other plants in the gardens near Port of Spain are pre- 
served from their destructive attentions. 



i 3 4 SAN FERNANDO. 




In order to save us from the fatigue of a long hot walk, 

our tramcar had been sent to meet us ; but on its way it 

had unfortunately run off the line. This mishap caused a 

very long delay ; but ultimately, with the help of many 

coolies and niggers, armed with crowbars, jacks, and levers, 

the car was lifted on to the rails again ; and we proceeded 

in it on our return journey through the sugar-cane fields, 
» 
where the fire-flies were flitting and dancing and hovering 

as usual. In whichever direction we looked there was 
always something amusing to see from the windows of the 

car. Near one station that we 
passed, I noticed a little Ma- 
drassee boy, bearing on his 
shoulder a huge bundle of 
sugar-canes, four times as big 
as his own body, and laden be- 
sides with what was probably 
his father's machete, also considerably out of proportion to 
himself. His clothes, like the image of Brutus at the funeral 
of Junia, were ' conspicuous by their absence ' ; and his little 
brown naked figure, standing out in strong relief against the 
sunset sky, formed quite a pretty picture. 

Arrived at San Fernando, we found a large crowd as- 
sembled, all anxious to see us. One very smart nigger lady 
audibly expressed great indignation that more ' advertise- 
ment ' ' had not been made of our coming ; so that the people 
from the country might have a chance of seeing the ' con- 
ditioners.' What the last word meant I do not pretend to 
know ; but it was evident that we were objects of great 
interest to the crowd, which pressed around us and followed 
us to the boat. The manager of the railway and several 
other people came on board with us, and were much delighted 

1 The accentuation of ' advertisement ' on the penultimate syllable is 
common, not only in the West Indies, but in the United States. 



A FOREST RAILWAY. 



135 



to have the opportunity of seeing the yacht, of which most 
of them had read, and about which they knew a great deal 
more than I should have expected. I think San Fernando 
is, if possible, even hotter than Port of Spain. At night 
especially the heat was almost unbearable ; and we all felt 
completely exhausted after our long day's work. 

Thursday, November 1st. — We left the yacht at six and 
started at 7 a.m. in a saloon carriage attached to a special 
train, through the high woods towards Port of Spain. The 
names of the stations on the little line of railway are, Claxton 
Bay, California, Couva, Carapichaima, Chaguanas, Cunupia, 
San Josef, Caroni, and San Juan. We passed at first over a 
somewhat flat, 
marshy coun- 
try, full of curi- 
ous plants that 
were strangers 
to me, and inha- 
bited by a great 
many wild-fowl, 
scarlet ibises, 
sea-fowl, and 

some black and yellow birds, the names of which I have for- 
gotten. The vegetable ' walls ' of the virgin forest on either 
side of the line were so thick that it was impossible to see 
the marvels that were doubtless concealed beyond them. 
Nothing can give so really good an idea of the scene as the 
description in Kingsley's ' At Last ' ; though I think that, 
perhaps, as a rule, he raises the expectations of his readers 
almost too high. 

' . . . . You will be struck by the variety of the vegeta- 
tion, and will recollect what you have often heard, that 
social plants are rare in the tropic forests. Certainly they 
are rare in Trinidad, where the only instances of social trees 




CLAXTON PIER 



136 TROPICAL VEGETATION. 

are the Moras (which I have never seen growing wild), and 
the Moriche palms. In Europe, a forest is usually made 



SEA PERNS, SWAMP, SAN JUAN 

up of one dominant plant of firs or of pines, of oaks or of 
beeches, of birch or of heather. Here no two plants seem 

-alike Stems rough, smooth, prickly, round, fluted, 

stilted, upright, sloping, branched, arched, jointed, opposite- 
leaved, alternate-leaved, leafless, or covered with leaves of 
every conceivable pattern, are jumbled together, till the eye 
and brain are tired of continually asking "What next?" 
The stems are of every colour — copper, pink, grey, green, 
brown, black as if burnt, marbled with lichens, many of them 
silvery white, gleaming afar in the bush, furred with mosses 
and delicate creeping film-ferns, or laced with the air-roots of 
some parasite aloft.' 

Among the trees were bread-fruit, cecropias, plantains, 
mimosas, cacti, silk- and cotton-trees, and palms of every 
variety, all covered with gigantic lianes, looking like huge 
serpents suspended from the boughs, besides pines and orchids 
of the most delicate hues and graceful shapes. Suddenly 
from the midst of the thickest part of the forest we quite 
unexpectedly emerged upon & series of wide savannahs, the 
grass of which was as green and as luxuriant as that of an 
English park, and where herds of fine cattle might be seen 
grazing under the trees with which the meadows were studded. 



'JOHNNY CROWS: 



137 



At the second station we reached we received a telegram 
from Sir Sanford Freeling, informing us that in consequence 
of a domestic bereavement, of which he had just heard from 
England, the breakfast this morning, at which he had invited 
us to meet Prince Henry of Prussia, had been postponed, but 
that the proposed ball to-night would take place as arranged, 
on account of the inconvenience and disappointment its 
adjournment would have caused. 

On arriving at Port of Spain, therefore, we breakfasted at 
the hotel; and directly afterwards drove out with Mr. Cramp- 
ton to pay a visit to Sir Joseph Needham, who had asked 
us to spend a long day with him and see his large estates, 
which, I believe, are among the finest in the island. 

The drive through the town of Port of Spain is always 
interesting. The ' Johnny Crows ' alone are an inexhaustible 
fund of amusement ; especially on an extra-hot day like this, 
when they fluff and plume and dust themselves without 
cessation ; except when they hang themselves out — not to 
dry, but to cool— from some convenient perch: assuming all 
the time the most ex- 
traordinary attitudes 
and conducting them- 
selves generally in an 
absurd and eccentric 
manner. As soon as 
we emerged on the 
road which runs along 
the sea-shore, we were 
met and refreshed by 
a delicious sea-breeze, 

which made. the drive, with the sparkling blue sea on one 
side, the tropical vegetation on the other, and the hills and 
mountains in the distance, towards the centre of the island, 
altogether delightful. Our coachman did not know his way, 






138 VISIT TO SIR JOSEPH NEED HAM. 



and drove us on nearly to San Josef, one of the stations we- 
had passed this morning, instead of turning off the main 
road to San Antonio. 

It was pleasant indeed to escape from the burning rays of 
a tropical sun into the cool umbrageous forests and shady 
glades, where new wonders of every kind met our admiring 
gaze. These refreshing woods were watered by clear limpid 
streams, running their course between huge grey boulders 
and large masses of caladiums and other water-plants, and 
over-shadowed by black and white bamboos and other 
moisture-loving trees, plants, ferns, and creepers, living 
and intertwining in rich and luxuriant confusion. The 
rivulets and purling brooks, which we had to cross at fre- 
quent intervals, looked as if they might be the home of many 
a trout, though I fear that in this respect appearances were 
deceptive ; and that they contained nothing more than lilies 
and wild weeds. 

After proceeding for some distance through the forest we 
came to the beginning of the plantation ; and, passing clump 
after clump of stately cacao-trees, which became more and 
more dense as we advanced, we arrived at a clearing which 
many years ago had been transformed into a garden. The 
beauties of that garden, and the kindness and hospitality of 
our reception by our host, it would be vain to attempt to 
describe. He had prepared every possible delicacy for every 
variety of taste. There were tea, coffee, cocoa, wine, cold 
meats, fruits of every kind, besides orangeade, lemonade, and 
lime-juice, which the old negro servants hospitably pressed 
upon us. Those who have never tasted orangeade or lemon- 
ade as made in the West Indies can have little idea what 
such compounds in their perfection are like. They would be 
appreciated anywhere ; but between the heat of the day and 
the thirst engendered by our long drive, they appeared to us 
simply ambrosial. 



HIS PLANTATIONS. 139 

After a short rest, we went for a walk through Sir Joseph's 
grounds, obtaining occasional views of the central ridge of 
mountains, which runs in a W.S.W. direction, from Point 
Manzanilla to Pointe-a-Pierres, and which includes Mount 
L'Ebranche, 718 feet high. The loftiest mountain in the 
island is the Tocuche, in the northern range, between Maraccas 
and Las Cuevas, the height of which is 3,012 feet. 

Sir Joseph Needham has been trying for years to improve 
this tract of land by judicious clearing and replanting ; so 
that, as the trees die down, others may grow up to replace 
them. His efforts have been attended with the most satis- 
factory results ; and his estates are now not only by far the 
largest in Trinidad, but his plantations are in the best order, 
and the produce— whether of tree or shrub, plant or tuber, 
creeper or cane — is amongst the finest in the island. 

The orange, lemon, shaddock, pomelo, and every de- 
scription of citrus, were weighed down by their own golden 
fruit : while the passion-flower's twining stems, gigantic as 
they really were, seemed quite incapable of supporting their 
burden, notwithstanding the assistance derived from the 
branches of the trees to which they clung, and which they 
decorated with their brilliant falling petals, as well as from 
the other creepers, so thickly interlaced as to form a perfect 
wall of foliage and flower. The vanilla plants seemed to 
thrive marvellously well in the damp, stifling heat ; the tama- 
rind-trees were covered with long pods : while yams, sweet- 
potatoes, arrowroot, cassava, and manioca, and, in fact, 
'every variety of crop that we passed, seemed to be in an 
equally flourishing condition. They were to a great extent 
shaded by huge forest-trees, the number of which was so 
great and their diversity so endless that I tried in vain 
to master their names. 

Sir Joseph Needham also grows sugar and coffee, but 
only in comparatively small quantities, the chief article of 



i 4 o CACAO PLANTATIONS. 



cultivation being Theobroma cacao, from which the cocoa and 
chocolate of commerce are manufactured. Having driven, 
in the course of the last few days, through miles and miles 
of cacao plantations, in some of which the trees were very 
young, in others of great age, and in others again in all 
the pride of maturity and beauty — their stems and lower 
branches thickly covered with brilliant crimson, purple, 
scarlet, orange, lemon, and green pods, from four to six 
inches long, and having something of the shape of a small 
vegetable-marrow or very large capsicum — I was particularly 
interested to see them here in every stage and process of 
their growth, and to hear all that Sir Joseph was kind 
enough to tell us about their culture and the preparation 
of the cacao for export. 

Next to sugar, cacao is the most important production of 
Trinidad. The quantity of sugar exported from the island 
in 1 88 1 was 98,000,000 lbs., of the value of 694,000?. : that 
of cacao 11,474,000 lbs., valued at 290,000?. Over 52,000 
acres of ground were under cultivation for sugar in 1879, 
and about half that extent for cacao and coffee. There are 
two distinct kinds of cacao, known respectively as creole and 
foreign ; the former being the most delicate and yielding the 
best pods. Cacao plantations can only be formed success- 
fully on virgin lands - that is to say, where no previous crops 
have been cultivated. Sir Joseph pointed out to us extensive 
clearings on the opposite side of the valley, which he in- 
formed us had been allotted to the coolies, who cultivate 
for their own benefit the 'shadow-plants' which have to be 
grown in order to protect the young cacao-plants, and which 
suffice to supply their simple wants. The virgin forest, con- 
sisting of a dense impenetrable mass of vegetation of all 
kinds, is first cleared by the coolies, and the ground is then 
prepared for the reception of the cacao-pods, which are planted 
in rows called ' cacao-walks.' The first protecting crop that 



CACAO CULTURE. 141 



is grown generally consists of sweet-potatoes ; then yams, then 
maize, then fruits, such as oranges, lemons, and peaches. 
Then come the bois immortels, or madres de cacao, which grow 
slowly, and which, when allowed to do so, attain an enormous 
size. As a rule, however, they are cut down as soon as the 
cacao-trees are supposed to be strong enough to need no 
further protection. At certain periods of the year the madre 
or immortel is thickly covered with bright scarlet blossoms, 
which, mingling and contrasting with the violet-red leaves of 
the young cacao-trees, the scarlet, yellow, green, and crimson 
pods, hanging from the stem and lower branches of those of 
more mature growth, and the richly-coloured orange and 
yellow flowers of the flamboyante (Poinciana), produce a 
wonderful effect. The young cacao-trees have a good many 
enemies besides the sun — one being the north wind ; another, 
the irregular showers that sometimes fall during the dry 
season ; and last, but not least, a multitude of destructive 
little birds, beasts, and insects, among which the parasol-ant 
occupies a prominent place. The cacao-plants are trans- 
planted three times. At the end of five years they are taken 
in hand by the European cultivator, who only allows them to 
bear a light crop during the first two years. At the age of 
twelve they are. fully productive ; and they go on bearing for 
a period of from ten to forty years ; though in some cases 
the time of fruition is greatly extended. In fact, several 
trees were pointed out to me as being over a hundred years 
old, and as still producing satisfactory crops. The height of 
the trees varies between fifteen and thirty feet, but some 
attain a much greater altitude. The cacao-pods, as I have 
mentioned, grow on the stem of the tree itself, and on the 
principal or lower branches, thus producing a very curious 
effect. Two crops are yielded annually, in June and Decem- 
ber ; the pods being cut off by means of a machete, or chopper, 
fastened to the end of a pole. When cut open, the interior 



142 



COCOA MANUFACTURE. 



of the pod is found to be filled with small black seeds, from 
fifty to a hundred in number, imbedded in what looks like 
custard, which, when quite fresh, tastes like the most de- 
licious lemon ice-cream, with a delicate soupcon of vanilla- 
chocolate. I know nothing more agreeable in. the way of 
refreshment than to have two or three large cacao-pods set 
before you in some cool shady spot, where the cream-like 
contents can be quietly discussed and enjoyed. I suggested 
to Sir Joseph that it seemed a great pity that this delicious 
substance, which is also very nutritious and wholesome, 
should be completely wasted — as is the case ; and he quite 
agreed with me, and promised to consider the possibility of 
utilising it in some way. 

The pods, having been cut in half, are laid out in the sun 
in long trays, which, at night, or in case of danger from rain 

or blight, can be 
placed under the 
shelter of the 
adjacent mat- 
covered huts. 
After being al- 
lowed to ferment 
for a few days, 
the seeds are 
separated from 
their creamy 
surroundings, 
washed, and a- 
gain spread out 
in trays to dry. Each pod is then 
broken into four or five pieces, which 
again are carefully dried, and which 
are finally raked and sorted on a clay 
floor. This last process completes 




PASSION-FLOWER FRUIT 



COFFEE-GRO WING. ■ 143 



the operation and transforms them into the cocoa-nibs with 
which we are all so familiar. It has been asserted that on 
the colour of the clay-floor just referred to depends to a 
great extent the ostensible quality of the cocoa, a particular 
shade of brown being the most highly appreciated in the 
market. 

It is a curious fact, and one showing a certain want of 
enterprise, and also a decided amount of prejudice, on the 
part of the Trinidadians, that although sugar, cacao, and 
vanilla are cultivated, one may say, side by side, on many 
estates, not a single ounce of chocolate is manufactured in 
the island. The raw materials are all sent over to France, 
whence all the manufactured chocolate consumed in Trinidad 
is imported, though both the inward and outward duties 
are high. A company was once formed, it is true, to make 
chocolate on the spot ; but nothing would induce the islanders 
to use it, or to purchase any which was not enveloped in the 
familiar wrapper of some well-known and favourite French 
manufacturer. Even the bottle containing some of the 
celebrated crhne de cacao liqueur, of which I had often heard, 
hut which I tasted to-day for the first time, bore the label of 
a Paris firm, by which the contents were doubtless con- 
cocted, instead of, as I first fondly imagined was the case, by 
one of the black-handed Abigails who waited on us. 

On the opposite side of the road to where the cacao was 
drying, coffee-berries were undergoing a somewhat similar 
process. A good deal of coffee is grown in Trinidad, 144,000 
lbs. having been exported in 1881 ; but it is not so important 
an item of production as sugar or cacao ; and we had already 
seen a much larger plantation in Brazil, when we visited 
Baron Bonito's fazenda at Santa Anna, during our stay at 
Bio de Janeiro, in 1877. The leaves of the coffee-shrub are 
of a rich dark glossy green ; the flowers, which grow in dense 
white clusters, when in full bloom, giving the bushes the ap- 



144 ORIGIN OF THE COFFEE-SHRUB. 



pearance of being covered with snow. The berries vary in 
colour from pale green to reddish orange or dark red, accord- 
ing to their ripeness, and bear a strong resemblance to 
cherries. Each contains two seeds, which, when properly- 
dried, become what is known to us as ' raw ' coffee. In 
Trinidad, as also on the large Brazilian estates, the berries 
are simply dried in the sun, and are afterwards passed 
through a mill, which crushes the shells and allows the 
separation of the seeds. A more elaborate system is adopted 
in some other places. The outer pulp of the berries is re- 
moved by a machine called a pulper ; the mucilaginous 
matter that remains is soaked off by immersion in water; 
and the parchment-like film that surrounds the dried seeds is 
removed by means of a mill and a winno wing-machine. 1 

It is supposed that the coffee-shrub is a native of the 
South of Abyssinia, the name being derived from the province 
of Caffa. Thence it was introduced into Arabia, from which 
country all the coffee used for more than two hundred years 
was supplied. It was transported to Batavia by the Dutch, 
who sent a plant home to Amsterdam about the beginning of 
the eighteenth century. The question of who first introduced 
it into America and the West Indies has never yet been quite 
clearly settled : the French asserting that it was planted by 
them in Martinique, and the Dutch claiming credit for having 
taken it to Surinam. Whichever statement be correct, it is 

1 There are few popular errors so widely spread as the delusion that the 
beverage called coffee is made from a roasted and ground berry. As I have 
shown, it is from the roasted and ground seed that coffee is prepared. The 
originator of the mistake seems to have been the illustrious Francis Bacon : — 
' They have in Turkey a drink called coffee, made of a berry of the same name, 
as black as soot and of a strong scent.' Lord Bacon's mistake may be due to 
the circumstance that the earliest coffee imported into England was what is 
known in commerce as ' coffee in the husk ' ; i.e. the seeds still surrounded by 
their membranous endocarps. It is not the less surprising to find it gravely 
stated in Latham's edition of ' Todd's Johnson's Dictionary ' that coffee is ' an 
infusion of the berries.' It is no more an infusion of the berries than it is an 
infusion of the leaf. 



THE 'GEOGRAPHICAL-TREE? 145 

almost certain that from the progeny of one single plant the 
whole of the coffee produced in Brazil and the West Indies is 
derived. And from the progeny of one horse and one mare, 
shipped to Paraguay in 1535, were there not hred those count- 
less herds which have since spread over the whole southern 
part of the Western World, and, passing the Isthmus of 
Panama, have wandered into North America ? 

On the plantation, as in Trinidad generally, the acalypha 
seemed to flourish in a marvellous manner; and — perhaps as 
much as, if not more than, many of the ' little stove-plants ' 
of home, which one sees growing here as forest trees — 
astonished us by its extraordinary development and size. 
These trees, of which there are many varieties, often form a 
prominent feature in the landscape, with their dark-brown 
leaves, covered with bright splotches of red and yellow. To 
the casual observer, they are not at all unlike crotons. In 
fact, many people persist in calling them by that name, 
though they really belong to the nettle tribe, as their name, 
derived from the Greek, indicates. By botanists they are 
classed among the Ewphorbiacece. One variety, which bears 
green leaves, with yellow and white markings, is called the 
'geographical-tree,' or sometimes the 'picture-tree,' because 
it is said to be always possible to trace in imagination a map 
or a picture upon the surface of each leaf. The foliage is 
much used for table decoration — even more so than flowers, 
not only on account of the curious and beautiful appearance 
of the plant, but because the peculiarity of the leaves, to 
which I have just referred, may possibly afford a fertile 
subject of conversation, especially to shy people. 

Two other trees, which we noticed particularly, I ought not 
to forget to, mention — the milk-tree (Tanghinia lactaria), 
which yields a sap in colour and taste like milk, if drunk 
when fresh ; and the blood-tree (Croton gossypifolium), which, 
when cut with a sharp knife, spurts forth what looks like 



I4& 



A PLANTER'S RESIDENCE. 



arterial blood. It is in reality an indiarubber-like juice, which 
is much used as a substitute for ordinary glue and varnish. 

Having spent a considerable time in seeing all that was 
interesting in the plantations, we returned to the house to 
rest, and found another hospitable repast awaiting us. 

There were all sorts 
of dishes peculiar 
to the island, 
besides exquisite 
fruits, as cool as 
if they had just 
come out of an 
ice-house, and as 
though the ther- 
mometer outside 
had stood at 30 
instead of 90 in the 
shade. The house,, 
surrounded on all 
sides by the veran- 
dah, where we sat 
afterwards, was 
exactly what I had 
always imagined 
the residence of a 
West India planter 
to be like. I felt, 
as I sat hi the cool 
shady room, and 
looked at the gay vista of flowers, fruit, and foliage that 
was visible through every opening, as though I must be 
living among the scenes of one of the story-books which I 
had read so often, or that I was now absolutely realising one 
of the many visions of childhood. The entire house was 







A COOLIES' SERENADE. 147 

built of various species of the many fine woods with which 
Trinidad abounds. The rooms, which opened into one 
another, had walls of mahogany, were ceiled with cedar, and 
walled and wainscoted with some other kind of wood ; while 
the heavily-carved doors were yet again of another variety. 
Even the dinner-table was without a cloth, and shone like a 
mirror. How the beautiful natural rings and markings of 
the wood would have delighted a connoisseur ! I had heard 
of, but had never seen, such a table before. In our grand- 
papas' days mahogany dinner-tables were, I have been told, 
very frequently pinged and marked, not naturally but arti- 
ficially, in connection with port-wine bumpers. 

The active negro servants and the more shy and reserved 
coolies appeared to consider themselves, and to be regarded, 
quite as members of the family, and to take the greatest 
pleasure and interest in ministering to our wants, calling our 
attention to each dish, and pressing us to partake of it. 

Looking along the verandah, where we afterwards en- 
joyed our coffee, we could see all Sir Joseph's multifarious 
feathered and farmyard pets assembled. There were peacocks, 
chickens, ducks, and geese, besides pigs, tame sheep, and 
goats, among which bright-eyed, and brightly, though scan- 
tily dressed, coolie children ran and scampered about ; while 
a large brown basket, heaped with gorgeous pods of the cacao, 
and another filled to overflowing with every variety of the 
citrus, gave a bright touch of colour to the foreground of the 
picture. 

Presently a band of coolies employed on the estate came 
up to the house in order to dance and sing for our entertain- 
ment. It was a very pretty sight ; and I believe that if we 
could have understood their language we should have been 
greatly amused, many of their songs being spontaneous pro- 
ductions, improvised in honour of our visit, and sung in 
alternate verses by the deep voices of men and the shrill 



148 



THE COOLIE 'HOSEIN: 



voices of women. Some of the latter wore really handsome 
bangles, anklets, and nose-rings, of clever workmanship, 
and evidently of considerable age. Sir Joseph Needham per- 
suaded one or two of them to sell their cherished ornaments, 

which I was 
very glad to 
acquire as 
a remem- 
brance of 
a most de- 
lightful day. 
We were 
greatly in- 
terested in 
hearing a 
description 
of the grand 
coolie fete 
—the 'Ho- 
sein ' or 
' Tadja ' — 
which takes 
place annu- 
ally at San 
Fernando in November. It must be wonderful to behold a 
procession of over five thousand coolies marching down to 
the sea-side, with tom-toms, drums, and other instruments 
of Oriental music ; dancing, and fencing with swords in the 
street at intervals, and carrying aloft over a hundred 
' masques ' or temples, ingeniously made of bamboos, tied 
together with string, covered with coloured paper of various 
designs, and ornamented with gilt and tin foil. Most of 
these temples are, from fifty to sixty feet high — some even 
larger ; and on reaching the quay the whoie of them are 




DIFFICULTIES. 



U9 



thrown into the water and destroyed. Whilst the procession 
is marching, rice is constantly thrown at the temples by 
coolies shouting 'hosein,' or 'hosah.' 

It was quite dusk before we commenced our homeward 
journey. Our horses were tired in spite of their long rest ; 
and the difficulties we met with in getting to the main road 
Avere numerous and laughable. Sometimes our steeds would 
gallop for a short distance, and then suddenly stop ; some- 
times we stuck in the middle of a stream, with one wheel of 
the carriage high on a boulder, and the other in a deep 
hollow ; sometimes we ran up a bank, and sometimes we were 
turned out altogether : but ultimately we succeeded in reach- 
ing the main road, and all was plain sailing till we got to 
Port of Spain, where we lost no time in returning on board, 
as thoroughly tired out as we ever felt in our lives. 





CHAPTEE IX. 

See how the fountains of snowy spray, 

As joyously on they run 
Over the level slabs of grey, 

Are dancing in the sun. 



Friday, November 2nd. 

WE landed at 7 o'clock and found carriages awaiting us, 
in which we drove with Captain and Mrs. Baker to see 
the Maraccas Falls, about thirteen miles from Port of Spain, 
As far as San Josef our way lay along a portion of the road 
over which we had passed yesterday ; but it was so beautiful 
that we were glad to have an opportunity of seeing and ad- 
miring it once more. 

San Josef is the ancient capital of Trinidad, and is cele- 
brated as the scene of the final struggle between Ealeigh and 
Berreos, which resulted in the capture of the latter. The 
church, as seen through some fine silk cotton trees, is pictur- 
esque, and the view from the interesting churchyard over the 



RECIPES FOR 'COCKTAILS? 151 



plain beneath is very fine. To-day being All Saints' Day, we 
passed a large number of people on the road, driving, riding, 
and walking in the direction of the churchyard, bearing 
wreaths and garlands of flowers to be laid on the graves of 
their relatives and friends. One poor girl had been carried 
all the way from a village beyond Maraccas. She was dying 
of fever ; and her friends, of whom about forty accompanied 
her, took it by turns to carry the hammock along the hot 
dusty road, in order that she might be enabled to perform the 
pious duty of placing her floral offerings on her mother's last 
resting-place, near which her own would probably ere long be. 
It was a touching sight. She looked so young and gentle, 
her brown skin was so clear, her dark eyes so large and 
lustrous — rendered unnaturally bright by the fever which was 
inwardly consuming her, and which brought a hectic flush to 
her poor wan cheeks ! 

After a time we reached our first halting-place, a sort of 
police-station in the midst of the forest, where those who 
cared to do so partook of sherry and bitters, or of an excel- 
lent 'cocktail,' compounded by Mr. Crampton, or, better still, 
of the most deliciously refreshing green oranges, far superior 
to anything of the kind we ever get at home. The ' cocktail ' 
met with such warm approval that I think some of my readers 
may like to have the recipe. The quantity is supposed to 
suffice for two people, though I think it would be more appro- 
priate for four or even more : — Bum, one large wineglassful ; 
syrup, two small dessert-spoonfuls ; Angostura bitters, half 
a teaspoonful ; two fresh eggs, raw. The whole is mixed 
with powdered ice, and stirred or ' swizzled ' until it froths 
well. There was another compound, called ' Crampton's 
tonic,' which also appeared to give great satisfaction; the 
ingredients in this' case being half a bottle of brandy, two 
ounces of sugar, two bottles of soda-water, a dash of Angos- 
tura bitters, a wineglassful of Dom (a liqueur made from 



152 



< S WIZZLE-STICKS? 



the young shoots of the palm-tree), and a pound and a half 
of ice, broken into very small pieces— not bigger than a nut 
(a hazel, I mean, not a ' cannon-ball ')— and then stirred 




ft; 



FLYIN'G ANTS 




briskly with a ' swizzle- 
stick,' rubbed rapidly 
between the hands. I 
believe the latter pro- 
cess is half the battle 
of the success of the 

compound, and I mean therefore to take home 
some 'swizzle-sticks/ They are cut from some 
kind of creeper, close to a joint, where four or 
five shoots branch out at right angles to the 
stem, so as to produce a star-like circle, re- 
sembling the spokes of a wheel, each radiating 
twig being about two inches long. Cocktails 
of all kinds are a great institution in Trini- 
dad ; having 
no doubt 
been origi- 
nally intro- 
duced from 
the northern 
mainland. 

From this 
point it was 
a lovely ride 




FALLS OF MARACCAS. 153 



through the forest* although the road was steep and the sun 
was hot. A woman emerged from the first cottage we passed 
on resuming our journey, and broke off a great bough of 
Cape jasmine, between three -and four feet long, covered 
with fragrant white flowers, which she proceeded ruthlessly 
to strip. She then presented the stem gracefully to me to 
serve as a switch, with which to urge on my somewhat lazy 
steed; but I need scarcely add that I begged for the flowers 
too. 

As we approached the falls the scenery became more and 
more enchanting, and, if possible, even more tropical in 
character, the humming-birds increasing in number the 
higher we mounted. Suddenly we arrived at a little hut, 
which had been roofed in this morning only, in anticipation 
of our visit, although the framework has long been in exist- 
ence. It reminded me a good deal of similar erections in 
far-off Tahiti, and of the pleasant feasts which we had so 
often enjoyed in them. The posts of the hut were formed 
of growing bananas, the roof being thatched with the broad 
leaves of the same plant. 

From this point a sharp turn round a projecting rock 
brought us face to face with the Falls of Maraccas them- 
selves, which consist of a veil of sparkling spray, falling from 
a height of 340 feet over a steep precipice, clothed from 
top to bottom with the most luxuriant foliage and vegetation 
imaginable, including great tanier leaves, bougainvillaeas, 
passion-flowers, lianes, scarlet plantains, orange-coloured 
arrowroot, ananas, and orchids of every kind. The shady 
forest was delightfully cool in comparison with the dusty 
road ; and by the side of the fall the air was so fresh, even 
to chilliness, that, agreeable as it was at first, we felt glad 
to get back into the sunshine after a little while. 

On our way, Mrs. Baker unfortunately slipped and sprained 
her ankle rather badly. For a time she was quite helpless, 

s 



154 



AN ACCIDENT. 



and I do not know what we should have done if Miss Liddell, 
who happened to be with her, and who had taken a great 
interest in our ' Sunbeam ' ambulance lectures, had not band- 
aged the limb so skilfully that, with a little assistance, she 
was able to limp down the hill until she reached her pony. 

The ferns we saw 
in these woods were 
finer than any we had 
previously observed ; 
and we should have 
liked to collect some 
specimens, if they 
had not been practi- 
cally inaccessible, and 
if the heat had not 
been so great as to 
prevent our caring to 
make any unneces- 
sary exertion. Allnutt 
Boissier was the only 
one of the party who 
had sufficient energy 
to take any steps in 
the matter. He se- 
cured the services of a 
couple of coolies, and, 
provided with large 
baskets and armed 
with machetes, man- 
aged to obtain some 
very fine roots, not 
only of ferns and or- 
chids, but of many 
other rare and curious 




A ROMANTIC POLICE-STATION. 



155 



plants, which we hope to coax 
into growing in colder climes. 
The machete is an almost indis- 
pensable article of equipment 
in making 
excursions 
in the in- 
terior of 
the is- 
land. It 
is used by 
the natives 
as a sort 
of walk- 
ing - stick 
and axe 
or cutlass 
combined. 
In fact, 
in many 
places, where the paths are not much frequented, it is neces- 
sary for the traveller to hew a way for himself through the 
dense mass of vegetation which, in the course of a few months 
even, completely obliterates all traces of a road. 

A little rest and refreshment under the trees at the police- 
station, while the horses were being changed, were most 
acceptable. How unlike one's pre-conceived ideas of an 
ordinary police-station w r as this romantic cottage, not only 
near, but actually in a wood ! Here we bought two old 
machetes as curiosities. While I was making my own bar- 
gain I was rather amused to observe the trickery of one of 
the men with whom we were dealing. He had two machetes — 
one very new (possibly from Birmingham) in a spotless case 
of red leather, which we first saw, and which he evidently 




156 A STREAM OF SWEET ODOURS. 

prized very much — the other, a really good old Indian blade 
in a dirty case. At the last moment, unperceived by us as 
he thought, he slily exchanged the new machete, which he had 
sold us, for the old one, which he had probably had in his 
possession for years, but which was in reality exactly what we 
should have tried to buy had we seen it in the first instance. 
As it was, the result of the transaction gave satisfaction 
to both parties : he went away delighted at having, as he 
thought, deceived us, while we were equally pleased with our 
new acquisition. 

During the halt we were surrounded by the very few in- 
habitants of the valley, laden with baskets of luscious fruit 
and bright flowers, which they were only too glad to dis- 
pose of in exchange for a few small coins, and with which 
we filled our carriage ; so that, as we passed swiftly through 
the now deliciously cool night air, we left behind us a stream 
of sweet odours — at least so we were assured by those who 
followed us. 

Captain Baker's horses were still quite fresh, but the others 
were tired, and would have preferred to spend the remainder 
of the night in drinking and rolling in the numerous streams 
we crossed to continuing their labours ; and I fear that a good 
deal of whipcord was required in order to stimulate them to 
further exertion. 

Later in the evening we went to the ball given by Sir 
Sanford Freeling in honour of Prince Henry of Prussia. Our 
host only appeared for a short time to receive his guests, and 
then retired, leaving them to the enjoyment of a most delight- 
ful dance, while his daughters did not appear at all down- 
stairs ; though we had a pleasant little chat with them on the 
airy verandah. 

The rooms were pleasantly and, to us, surprisingly cool, 
and the atmosphere was altogether a good deal less oppressive 
than that of many London drawing-rooms in ' the season.' 



A QUIET MORNING. 



157 



Every window was wide open ; 

there was no gas, but there were plenty 

of candles instead, judiciously defended 

by glass globes alike from draughts and 

from insects ; a perfect floor, excellent 

music, and agreeable company; in fact, 

everything would have been most enjoyable, 

if we had not felt quite so tired after our 

long day's work. 

Saturday, November 3/r?. — It was quite a 
relief, on waking this morning, to think that, 
instead of having to start off somewhere on 
an early expedition, we had arranged, in 
spite of many invitations, to have a compara- 
tively quiet morn- 
ing on board 
though there 
was plenty 



to be done 
in the way of settling up 
accounts, writing farewell 
letters, and getting things 
ready for the homeward 
mail. Nearly everybody 
who could do so had 
slept on shore after 
the ball, so that we 
were quite a little 
family party on the 
yacht. 

The amount of 
letter-writing and 
other business ac- 
complished did not, 




MARACCAS FALLS 



158 RARE FLOWERS. 



however, quite equal our hopes and expectations ; partly in 
consequence of the visits of numerous friends, who came to 
say good-bye, bringing us welcome presents of flowers and 
fruits. Mr. Prestoe, from the botanic gardens, brought off a 
real clothes-basketful of his choicest specimens of exquisitely 
beautiful orchids and rare blossoms, some of which would be 
worth almost a' king's ransom in England at this or indeed 
at any time of the year. Scarlet hibiscus, gardenias, jas- 
mines of all kinds, allamandas, mixed with the foliage of 
the rarest crotons, the colours of which graduated from the 
most delicate lemon to orange, scarlet, and purple ; — these 
formed the foundation, above which was a marvellous collec-' 
tion of orchids, some of which looked almost as if they might 
belong to the animal instead of to the vegetable world, so 
closely did they resemble butterflies, beetles, and all sorts of 
queer-looking things, growing on slender stalks, interspersed 
with phalaenopsis of various kinds, specimens of the ' Holy 
Ghost ' orchid, with the little dove brooding in the centre, 
and the brown slipper -or chid, fit chaussure for Cinderella 
or a fairy-queen. 

Sir Joseph Needham kindly and generously sent us off 
two boat-loads of fresh fruit and vegetables, to say noth- 
ing of a plentiful supply of ducks, chickens, and eggs. His 
gift included a heap of gorgeous cacao-pods, of every shade of 
colour, from darkest purple and brown to palest lemon and 
green ; piles of cocoanuts, oranges, limes, lemons, avocado- 
pears, custard or ' sugar apples,' as they call them here ; 
bunches of bananas, capsicums, chillies, gherkins, tomatoes, 
yams, sweet potatoes, and many other fruits and vegetables, 
the names of which I am unable to remember ; besides fifty 
pounds of coffee, grown on his own estate. The whole formed 
a most acceptable offering to take to sea with us in this hot 
climate, and one which will be much appreciated by all, in- 
cluding family, guests, servants, and crew. 



FAREWELLS. 



159 




having 



The Governor 
been so good as to send 
his steam-launch for us, we 
went ashore, to breakfast 
with the rest of the party, 
make our last purchases, and to 
perform the much less agreeable 
duty of bidding our last farewells 
to those who, though we had only 
known them for a week, had al- 
ready come to be regarded, owing 
to the great kindness they had shown 
to us, as friends of much longer 
standing. 

Prince Henry and the other offi- 
cers of the ' Olga ' embarked at two 
o'clock ; and the frigate weighed 
anchor at three, though she did not 
actually sail till an hour later, some 
time being occupied in swinging at 
the buoy, in order to adjust her com- 
passes. The ' Olga,' which is rigged 
as a barque, is well adapted as a 
cruiser for general service. Her lines 
are very graceful ; she sits well on the 
water, and has a high freeboard. Six 
ships similar to her are now being 
built for the German navy. They have a displacement of 



i6o BIRDS AND REPTILES. 



2,100 tons, and a speed of from 13^ to 14^ knots, and carry- 
eight four-ton guns, besides boat-guns, Hotchkiss guns, and 
torpedo tubes. 

At four o'clock an interesting and encouraging inaugural 
meeting was held in the Council Chamber of Port of Spain, 
for the purpose of establishing a centre of the St. John Am- 
bulance Association, under the presidency of Mr. Pyne, the 
Colonial Secretary, in the unavoidable absence of the Gover- 
nor. The resolution to form the centre was unanimously 
adopted by the many influential people present, including the 
owners and managers of several sugar estates. 

In the room where the meeting was held, there is what 
would be a valuable collection of birds and reptiles, if they 
were only properly named and catalogued ; but as none of the 
specimens have labels attached to them, and the catalogue has 
unfortunately been lost, their interest is somewhat diminished, 
and the visitor has to find out what he can for himself. 
Among other things there is a boa-constrictor twenty-five 
feet long ; a coral snake, the beautiful colour of which has 
completely faded ; a snake, the bite of which had been known 
to kill a man in four hours, and many other reptiles, both 
venomous and harmless, from this and neighbouring islands, 
such as alligators, crocodiles, and lizards, besides all sorts 
of queer beasts and insects. There are some very curious 
birds, too, such as the King of the Corbeaux, and the Gover- 
nor of the Corbeaux : the vulture-like bipeds which I have 
already referred to; pretty woodpeckers with scarlet heads; 
jet-black flycatchers, with pure white heads, like racing caps, 
that we have seen flying about ; humming-birds, and all sorts 
of graceful feathered creatures. In one large cabinet is a 
collection made entirely by the late Governor of Trinidad, 
which includes many interesting specimens, especially of the 
various kinds of spondylus, found on the eastern side of the 
island. 



WEST INDIAN BOUSES. 



The Council-Chamber itself is a spacious apartment, with 
windows on three sides, and with the most enormous round 
table that I ever beheld, in the middle, furnished with the 
usual supply of inkstands, pens, blotting-books, and large 
sheets of foolscap paper, in readiness for a meeting. Though, 
of course, constantly used, this hall of council does not appear 
to be often swept ; and the amount of dust and cobwebs 
everywhere was something astonishing. The ceiling is formed 
of square panels, cut from the various woods of the country. 

Directly the meeting was over, we had to hurry away, 
pick up the things we had left at the exceedingly comfortable 
Hotel de France, and say farewell to our good landlady, 
Madame Giesen. It had been a pleasant surprise to us, 
after what we had heard,- to find such a good hotel in the 
island. The cooking and wines are excellent ; the rooms, 
with their wide balconies, cool and airy; the attendance 
thoroughly efficient, and the general civility extreme ; while 
the personal anxiety shown by the landlady for the comfort 
of her guests w r as specially gratifying in this somewhat ' free 
and easy ' colony. Of course the general arrangements of 
the house are all West Indian in style ; and it must not 
be expected from my description that the visitor will find 
luxuriously furnished apartments, with Turkey carpets and 
rich curtains — which, as a matter of fact, would be very 
uncomfortable additions ; for they would harbour all manner 
of centipedes, snakes, and other afflictions. I think that 
few things strike one so much on first coming to the tropics, 
as the utter bareness of all the interiors, from the Emperor's 
palace, or the Governor's residence — as the case may be — 
downwards. The rooms contain not a scrap of superfluous 
furniture, and not a hanging nor a mat that is not absolutely 
wanted. A West Indian boudoir, crammed with upholstery 
and ' curios ' — as our boudoirs are — would very speedily become 
an ark, unpleasantly full of all manner of creeping things. 

T 



1 62 



MAJESTIC SCENERY 



"We embarked at half-past five : many friends coming to 
see us off at the pier. Captain Bingham and Mr. Crampton 
alone accompanied us on board ; but they could not remain 
long : for the anchor was already weighed and steam was up ; 
and we were soon swiftly gliding away from the Port of Spain, 
along the shores of the beautiful Island of Trinidad. Never 
shall we forget the spot where we have beheld so much that 
is majestic and picturesque. Despite the pains I have taken 
to observe carefully all that was best worth seeing during our 
brief visit, everything has been so varied, so novel, and so 
strange to me, that my mind almost fails to grasp the full 
significance of the scenes on which I have gazed ; and I can 
only reflect with feelings of admiration on all the lavish love- 
liness of nature, and wonder if it be possible that anything 
can exist more enchanting in this fair world of ours. 




THE OLGA 




CHAPTEK X. 



VENEZUELA. 

In the afternoon they came unto a land 

In which it seemed always afternoon : 

All round the coast the languid air did swoon, 

Breathing like one that hath a weary dream. 



Sunday, November 4th. 

fpHE sunrise this morning was marvellously fine. We 
-L had come out last night by the Boca Grande, an open- 
ing on the West of the Dragons' Mouths, which form the 
northern entrance to the Gulf of Paria. At eight a.m. we 
found ourselves in sight of the Testigos Islands. The sky 
was cloudless, as usual ; and as we were steaming before a 
Jight wind, the full power of the sun was felt. We passed 



164 MARGARITA. 



to the south of the islands, which abound in land-tortoises, 
and form breeding-places for a few turtle. Spermaceti 
whales also occasionally disport themselves in the vicinity. 
We saw something ' very like a whale ' in the afternoon, as 
we steamed along the north coast of the Island of Margarita, 
but could not quite make out, even with a glass, whether it 
was one or not. 

There is a good channel to the southward, between Mar- 
garita and the mainland, twenty miles in width, in the centre 
of which lie the islands of Co^he and Cubagua. Margarita 
itself extends about forty-five tiles east and west, and the 
mountains at each end attain a considerable elevation. The 
centre consists of a lagoon and a low marshy tract of land, 
which -just as at Tahiti — divides the island into two parts, 
and causes it to look from a distance like two distinct islands. 
At the western extremity Mount Marana rises to a height of 
3,000 feet. The principal manufactures of Margarita are 
hammocks and cotton stockings. The former are well known 
for their good quality, and some of those we have been using 
lately came from here. Pearl fishery was formerly one of 
the principal occupations of the inhabitants of the island, 
but this branch of industry has now considerably declined. 
We could not see any houses or discern an}>- traces of cultiva- 
tion, notwithstanding the rather interesting fact that Mar- 
garita, which forms a province of Venezuela, is supposed to 
be more thickly populated, in proportion to its size, than 
any other part of South America. 

My purchases from the coolie-women on Sir Joseph 
Needham's estate include a gold necklet, which would favour- 
ably compare in workmanship with many of the gold orna- 
ments from the ancient tombs of the Incas of Peru, and 
two silver bracelets of a sort of treble-curb-chain pattern, 
ornamented with dragon heads, by means of which they can 
also.be transformed into a necklace if desired. The bracelets 




67 & Lon£i±n£l£ "West from. Greenwich 



Ed>v d Wdler 



NewYork: Henry Holt & Co. 



BANGLE-MAKING. 



165 





are wonderful speci- 
mens of work, and are 
very old and difficult 
to procure. I tried to 
trace their history, but 
the woman from whom 
I bought them said in 
reply to my inquiries : 
— ' Father ; grandfather ; one 
more after that,' by which I 
suppose she meant that they 
had descended to her from 
her ancestors— though one is scarcely ac- 
customed to think of a coolie as having 
traceable ancestors. Very pretty little 
bangles are sometimes made \r<j the coolies, 
in the presence of the purchaser, out of 
the coins given to them for the purpose. 
They melt them with a common blow- 
pipe ; beat the silver into shape with a 
rude hammer ; then scratch the pattern 
in with a rusty nail ; and the effect is 
really wonderful, considering the simplicity 
T of the process and the rudeness of the 

tools. 
Some of -the other things that have been given us are very 
interesting. The ordinary grass hammocks are made prin- 
cipally by the Indians of the upper Orinoco, and are very 
comfortable to sleep in, with the addition of a rug as a 




1 66 SMALL ANIMALS AND BIRDS. 



protection from the hard knots. Mr. Crampton presented me 
with a fine cotton hammock, each thread of which is hand- 
spun • by the Indian women. It may be packed into the 
smallest possible compass ; and is so soft and warm that you 
can roll yourself up in it, and require no other covering. 
With a pole through the loops at the top, and resting on four 
cross-pieces - the supports being carefully inserted in old pre- 
served-meat tins filled with water — you can sleep in such a 
hammock in tolerable security from any insects, except those 
that fall from the roof overhead, or the tree above you, accord- 
ing as you elect to sleep under the blue vault of heaven — for 
the sake of fresh air, facing possible, but unknown, dangers 
— or in the far greater security, but closer atmosphere, of 
a house. The conical Timit caps, made from the delicate 
brown net-work that covers the spathe of the Bussu palm 
(Manicaria saccifera), gaily decorated with parrots' feathers, 
and worn by the Indians as a head-covering, are also very 
curious, and are quite new to me. My collection of gifts 
further included some curious little opossums, with longer ears 
than I have generally seen, and very long tails, which they 
use in the same manner as does a kangaroo. Another of 
my acquisitions is a pretty little grey monkey ; and the 
forecastle is, I believe, quite full of parrots, green and 
yellow lories, and all sorts of small coloured birds. Our live- 
stock includes several ducks, partly Muscovy, partly East 
Indian (a combination to which, perhaps, Eussia would not 
object) ;' some chickens, so small that it is difficult to keep 
them inside the coops ; and sheep, of which six go in the 
space usually devoted to two. Altogether we had quite a 
long Sunday afternoon's inspection of all the pets. The 
quarter-deck looks unusually picturesque, with hammocks 
slung under the boom, foreign bird-cages hung up in con- 
venient spots, animals of all sorts disporting themselves, and 
ladies and children in bright dresses sitting about ; while 



GUY FAWKES'' DAY IN THE TROPICS. 167 

from the rigging are suspended bananas, cocoa-nuts, and 
fruit of various kinds and brilliant colours. 




Monday, November 5th. — ' Bemember, remember, the 5th 
of November ! ' Assuredly I shall remember Guy Fawkes' 
day in the tropics. Anything less like our idea of that 
generally foggy anniversary in London cannot well be ima- 
gined. A fiercely hot sun was tempered by a cool northerly 
breeze, which' sent such heavy rollers on the cocoa-nut fringed 
shore that it seemed more than doubtful if we should be able 
to land on our arrival at La Guayra, where the surf is some- 
times tremendous. 

We could see the little island of Centinella, or Sentinel 
Eock, early in the morning ; and as we approached nearer 
and steamed close along the coast of Venezuela, with its fine 
richly- wooded mountains, and little strips of cultivated sugar- 
cane and cocoa-nut palms, we were reminded vividly of the 
approach to Hilo, in Hawaii. Oddly enough, we had also 
experienced similar anxiety on the morning when we came in 
sight of that island, as to the probability of being able to 



1 68 MARINE LIFE. 



land. After rnid-clay the northerly breeze appeared to mode- 
rate, and the sea to abate, and by the time we were oft* the 
pretty bathing-place of Macuto - consisting of little villas, 
dotted about among gardens, beneath the shelter of a high 
cliff — our hopes of landing began to rise considerably. The 
roadstead of La Guayra was full of ships, including three 
large steamers, two English and one French. What the 
latter came here for, I do not exactly know ; for France has 
neither trade nor citizens in this country, and has broken off 
friendly relations with Venezuela, for some occult reason, and 
has withdrawn her Minister. 

While we were slowly steaming about to pick up an 
anchorage, we had ample time to look over the side of the 
vessel and admire the colour of the water, which is clear as 
crystal, and of a bright greenish blue tint, very different from 
the muddy sea near Trinidad. I never saw water teeming 
to such an extent with life of every kind. Fish of all sorts 
and sizes swam close to us ; while the patches of sargasso 
weed that floated past literally swarmed with them. We got 
some on board and found they were quite little things, from 
half an inch to an inch long, in colour and shape very much 
resembling the gold and silver fish of China and Japan, 
made familiar to us by the specimens we have in our fish- 
ponds at home. There were also some violet and blue 
medusEe, and thousands of horrid-looking cream-coloured jelly- 
fish, bigger than a man's head ; while in one of the Indian 
canoes which we passed we noticed a sort of sucking-fish, 
(Echineis remora), which is used in catching other fish. 
Arrived at the field of operations, the fisherman lets go an 
anchor and puts the sucking-fish, attached to a long line 
with a buoy at the end of it, overboard. It sees other 
fish at a great distance, darts after them, and attaches 
itself to them by means of the sucker on the top of its 
head. The Indian easily raises his little anchor, paddles 



A DIFFICULT LANDING. 



169 



leisurely after the re- 
rnora, removes the cap- 
tured fish into his canoe, 
and repeats the operation 
untii he has caught as 
many fish as he wants. 
Thus, one of the ugliest 
most incapable-looking of crea- 
is made by savage instinct to 
become of some use in procuring food 
for the superior animal. 

Soon a large boat, containing the 
harbour-master and custom-house 
and quarantine officers, came along- 
side. We had been told in Trinidad 
that these functionaries would require 
not only a list of our passengers but 
also of all our provisions and stores, 
which it would have been rather a 
macuto difficult matter to supply ; but, as we 

expected would be the case, the state- 
ment proved to be entirely incorrect— at least, as far as yachts 
are concerned. The harbour-master, after having been shown 
over the yacht with the other officials, and having expressed 
great interest in the inspection, took us ashore with him in 
his big boat, which was much more suitable for landing 
through the surf than our own would have been. The rollers 
were not very formidable after all ; but still a good deal of 
delicate management was required in order to bring the boat 
alongside the wooden pier. The rudder was unshipped, and 
the men lay on their oars till a great roller took us in ; when 
as many of the party as had time to do so sprang out before 
the return wave swept the boat back. This operation had to 
be repeated five times before we were all landed. 




170 



LA GUAYRA. 



In the town itself there was not much to be seen, though 
the view up to the hills behind was decidedly fine. La 
Guayra, like many other South American towns, is in a 
generally dilapidated condition. It contains two plazas, 
ornamented with bronze gas lamp-posts of the most modern 
approved Parisian pattern, some handsome trees and some 
pretty flower-beds. There are a few good shops in the very 
untidy tumble- down-looking main streets ; and the Hotel 
Nettuno, kept by civil Mrs. Delphine, is really not at all bad. 
It has nice, open, airy rooms and a pretty patio full of flowers 
— among which some exquisitely scented white Lima lilies 
were conspicuous. The smells from the street, on the other 
hand, were somewhat offensive to unaccustomed nostrils ; but 
the proprietor of the hotel took pains to assure us that these 
odours were ' particularly wholesome ' : especially when, as at 
present, mingled with the scent of the stables underneath 
the house, and wafted into the rooms by the fresh cool sea 
breeze that was just springing up. The hotel was undergoing 
some repairs, and the floors and ceilings were therefore not 

quite so clean as 
they might have 
been ; but tlje 
beds looked white 
and inviting. The 
dinner, of which I 
annex a Spanish 
menu with trans- 
lation, was excel- 
lent. The wines 
were very fair in 
quality, and had 
been deliciously 
cooled with ice brought down by train from the ice-making 
machine at Caracas. 




HOTEL NETTOTO 



HOTEL NEXT UNO. 



171 




Sopa de pure con calabaza 
Pescado d la burdelesa 
Guisado extra 
Lingua en salsa 
Sesosfrltos d la milanesa 
Asado 

Frizoles negros 
Roa't Beef 
Papas a I'inglesa 
Plantation liorneados 
Dtilce y queso 
Cafe y te 



Puree of Pumpkin 

Poisson a la bordelaise 

Ejtra Hew 

Langue de Bosiif 

Ctrvelles f rites a la milanaise 

Baked Beef \ , . „ 

t,, , r, f a la Venezuela 
Black Beans 1 

Roast Beef 

Pcmmes de terre a Vanglaise 

Bah d Plantains 

Conserve et frontage 

Cafe el the 



Mr. Cage, the English Vice- Consul, who had kindly met 
us on landing, was dining at the table d'hote. The American 
Consul and his sister, Mr. and Miss Bird, and another 
American gentleman and his wife, who had been in the 
West Indies and on the Spanish main, on and off, for 
seventeen years, were also of the party ; so that we were able 
to gather a good deal of information about this interesting 
part of the world. All the English-speaking guests were 
placed together at one end of the table ; and about thirty 
people of different nationalities, and various shades of com-* 
plexion, at the other. 

After dinner we made our arrangements for riding to- 
morrow to Caracas, which mode of travelling we were assured 
would not take much longer than going by train. Then 
we returned on board in the big boat again ; for it was still 



THE 'LONG STROKE: 



rough, and re-embarking was more difficult than landing 
had been. The Venezuelan boatmen, wishing to pay us 
special honour, followed the example of Spanish oarsmen 
under similar circumstances, and took very long strokes, 
making a pause after each, during which one could count 
from twenty-three to twenty-five; then taking another long 
stroke and so on. It was no doubt meant as a great compli- 
ment ; but it gave the boat a most unpleasant motion on the 
somewhat heavily rolling sea, causing many of us to feel 
extremely uncomfortable, and all of us to be glad to find 
ourselves once more on board the ' Sunbeam ' ; even though 
she herself was by no means steady, under the influence of 
the long ground-swell. 

Tuesday, November 6th. -We rolled heavily all night, and 
I never felt much more sea- sick and altogether miserable 



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than when I rose at 3 a.m., and by the light of a solitary 
candle (we hardly ever have more, because lights of any sort 
immediately raise the temperature of the cabin in which they 



RED RATS AND BLACK RATS. 173 

are used, and attract the mosquitos) tried to find some cool 
riding habiliments for our excursion. A little before five I 
heard with joy the sound of oars approaching; and for once 
in my life was really glad to leave the ' Sunbeam.' Our 
passage ashore was again rough ; and on arriving at the 
pier I utterly collapsed, and had to remain perfectly quiet 
for some time. Tom wanted me to .give up the expedition 
altogether ; but I did not wish to do that if it could possibly 
be helped. Luckily, perhaps, for me, there was some little 
delay about the mules, saddles, and so forth, and by the time 
they were ready, and I had been three-quarters of an hour on 
shore, I began to feel better, though very weak and limp, 
and in anything but a fit state to enjoy such a long and 
fatiguing expedition as that to Caracas and back was bound 
to be. 

As I sat, or rather lay, motionless on the wharf, great 
red rats and black rats, and other curious creatures, came 
scampering round about and almost over me in their hurry 
to gain their felonious holes and lurking-places before dawn. 
Bats' both large and small abounded, and spiders were in- 
numerable ; but all were in equal haste to retire — not for the 
night, but for the day. My own saddle would not fit the 
wretched little humpbacked but ' very quiet ' mule that had 
been provided for me ; and the only alternative was to make 
use of a decidedly mediaeval specimen of a Mexican lady's 
saddle, with no third pommel, and a broken crutch and tree. 
In addition to these defects the off-pommel was so completely 
worn through as to have ceased to be anything but a sharp 
iron spike, not at all suitable for holding on by; while the 
stirrup was utterly useless. 

In process of time most of the preliminary obstacles were 
overcome ; and we began to climb the narrow steep streets 
of the town. The mules evidently did not at all approve of 
the excursion, for one or other of them obstinately stopped at 



174 



ROAD TO CARACAS. 



every turning we came to, and either stood quite still, twirled 
round and round, or kicked furiously, according to the brute's 
particular temperament. We had only an ambiguous kind 
of Venezuela muleteer as a guide, who did not know the 
road very well; but at length we got really clear of La 
Guayra, and proceeded by way of the now dry bed of a 
mountain-torrent, past a 




little old fort, with 
small round towers 
pierced for arrows. 
This fort has "been 
more than once prac- 
tically demolished, 
but has been repaired 
again and again, a 
brand new gun being 
finally put on the top to command the bay and the shipping 
at anchor. Our upward path was a steep rough staircase, 
the vegetation on either side of which chiefly consisted of 
mimosas and acacias of various kinds, some with little white 
tassels, some with long white and yellow spikes of flowers, all 
more or less like the familiar bottle-brush of the English 
greenhouse. There were also magnificent banks of aloes in 
every stage of maturity, varying from an inch high to splendid 
plants with tall stems of yellow flowers, so regularly shaped 



A DELIGHTFUL RIDE. 



175 



as to look almost like giant candelabra, waiting in the 
wilderness until the time should come for them to be cut 
down, and to offer their dumb services for the illumination 
■of the next entertainment in the President's ball-room. The 
enormous cacti formed another striking feature in the land- 
scape. Ten, twenty, thirty, and even forty feet high they 
reared their straight hairy angular stems, from which grew 
scarlet, white, and yellow flowers, and branches which looked 
exactly as if they had been strangled by a piece of string- 
tied too tightly round them. Ipecacuanha, covered with 
bright red and yellow flowers grew in profusion ; and bushes 
covered with apricot blossom, trees made gay with bunches 
of yellow cassia (from the leaves of which senna is made), 
blue, red, purple, and white convolvuli {Ipomcea), and other 
plants of sorts unknown to us, grew and trailed and crept 
everywhere. 

As we mounted to a height of 2000 or 3000 feet, the 
change in the quality of the air was inexpressibly delicious, 
especially after the species of hot steam bath we had been 
living in for the last few days, under the rays of the burning 
sun. The path to Caracas fortunately lies all along the 
shady side of the mountain ; and this made the ride delight- 
ful, especially at so early an hour in the morning, when every 
leaf and blade of grass was still dripping and glittering with 
the heavy night-dew, and emitting delicious fragrance as our 
mules, pushing their way through the bushes on each side of 
the narrow and evidently very little frequented path, trampled 
them under foot. Our progress was sometimes rather hazard- 
ous; for the edge of the perpendicular precipice on one 
side, from 1000 to 2000 feet deep, was completely concealed 
by the abundant vegetation, which the mules occasionally 
stopped to eat. More than once I was startled at finding my 
mule suddenly crane his head over to get at the top-shoots of 
some shrub growing just below the path, in the fissure of a 



176 



A TROPICAL FOREST. 



precipice, garlanded with lianes, ipomasas, allamandas, hibis- 
cus, begonias, and all manner of flowers and creeping ferns, 
orchids, and parasites. One could not think much about the 
danger, however, for the beauty of the scene and foliage 
increased at every step ; and I simply let the reins lie on my 
mule's neck, and gazed around with wonder and admiration 
at the tangled mass of luxuriant verdure beneath our feet, 
above our heads, and on every side, as we wound our way 
upwards. This tropical forest was more beautiful than any 
others I had seen; for the reason that, growing on the side 

of the mountain, the 
wood was not quite 
so dense and impene- 




trable as is ofttimes the case. It was even 
possible now and again to see through the 
forest and to catch glimpses of the plain lying at our feet : 
the blue sea sparkling in the sunshine beyond, and the moun- 
tains in the distance. Over our heads were grand trees, 



TROPICAL VEGETATION. 177 

with stems rising clear from the mass of vegetation out of 
which they sprang, to a height of at least a hundred feet. 
Some were quite unencumbered even by a single branch, and 
thus displayed to the best advantage their natural strength 
and majesty. Others were so overgrown and enveloped by 
orchid climbers, pine-apples, and similar plants, that their 
noble proportions were lost sight of in the more evanescent 
gracefulness of the parasites, by the smothering tendrils 
and life-sucking fibres of which they were surrounded and 
enfeebled. 

There were great silk-cotton trees with beautiful foliage 
and hanging pods ; the lignum- vitse, the wood of which is so 
hard that it turns the edge of the keenest tools and resists 
the sharpest nail ; the guaiacum, with a wood almost as hard 
and valuable ; the roble (Catalpa longissima), a tree very like 
an elm ; and a graceful fan-like palm, the leaves of which are 
used for so many different purposes that the tree derives its 
name in each district from the particular use to which the leaf 
is there most generally put. Thus it is sometimes called 
the fan-palm, because travellers use the leaves as fans ; the 
horse-palm, because they are used for driving off flies ; the 
thatch-palm, and the hat-palm, the young shoots making 
excellent sombreros or panamas. I believe its proper name is 
Copernicia tectorum. We also saw many specimens of the 
travellers' palm, each leaf of which, however dusty or arid 
may be the spot in which the tree grows, yields, when cut by 
the thirsty traveller, from half a pint to a pint of water. Then 
there were ferns of various kinds, some of enormous size ; and 
several specimens of the curious Pashiuba or Paxiuba palm, 
mounted on stilt-like roots, which to my mind always pre- 
sents the appearance of a gigantic spider trying to get its 
legs out of the mud, and run away w 7 ith the tree on its back. 
In the plains below w T e could see the beautiful mimosas and 
alcornocos, the feathery heads of which afforded grateful 

x 



i 7 8 



SAND-BOX-TREE. 



shade to the sleepy and thirsty herds of cattle that were 

reposing beneath. 

After riding for more than two hours we made our first 

halt, under a large sand-box-tree, the tall thorny stem of 

which, with its large 
leaves, insignificant red 
spikes of flowers, curious 
green turbaa-shaped nuts 
of this year's growth, 
and brown ones of last 
year, we examined with 
much interest. The nuts 
are divided into seg- 
ments, and look some- 
thing like corrugated 
iron outside, being -so 
hard and heavy that 
they are frequently used 
for paper-weights. The 
Latin name of the tree, 
Hura crepitans, is de- 
rived from a trouble- 
some habit its fruit has 
of spontaneously blow- 
ing itself up. 1 
Another hour of travelling, through what now began to 

appear to us somewhat like an interminable forest, brought 

us to a little hut or shelter, but apparently no nearer to the 

1 It is remarkable that when ripe and exposed to a dry atmosphere this 
fruit bursts with much violence, and with a sharp crack or report as of a small 
pistol. The action is shown by the curiously curled portions of the individual 
cells of the fruit ; and these sides or walls of the cells when once thus curled 
and parted, can never be reduced to their original form, or joined together 
again. Sometimes a strong wire passed round it will keep it together and 
quiet for a time, but I have known this insubordinate fruit to explode even 
after a vear or more of bondage. 




HIDDEN SONGSTERS. 179 

«nd of our journey. Thence we went on mounting, always 
mounting, through plantations of fine coffee, protected by the 
usual ' shade-trees,' or Madres-de-eoeo. Coffee will not grow 
in the valleys of Venezuela, but flourishes on the higher 
land of the mountains. We also passed several cacao planta- 
tions, the trees in which all looked exceedingly healthy and 
thriving. The visual effect in looking up some of the moun- 
tain slopes — entirely covered with the dark shining leaves 
and snow-white flowers of the coffee-plant, the berries being 
about the size of cherries, and of every conceivable shade of 
colour — was very striking. The banks on either side of the 
path were a mass of ferns. I never saw so many varieties of 
adiantum, or such splendid fronds — some of them three or 
four feet long, as I ascertained by measurement — while the 
exquisitely graceful Lygodium scandens trailed from tree to 
tree, or hung in graceful festoons hundreds of feet long, 
down the rocks, mixed with many other kinds of ferns and 
orchids. 

Throughout the ascent we had heard the enchanting songs 
of birds. The notes of three of these feathered songsters in 
particular attracted our attention, though we never caught 
sight of the vocalists. One resembled the song of a large 
deep-noted nightingale, all its sweet trills and harmonious 
* jug-jug' enhanced in beauty and supplemented by a murmur 
as of a gurgling stream. Another reminded me of a sweet- 
noted missel-thrush, singing in the spring-time ; while a 
third recalled the robin, as he sends forth his little lay of 
rejoicing when the winter snows are past and all once more is 
bright and green. There were, of course, countless other 
birds, but none so remarkable in song as these. The hum- 
ming-birds might be seen, sucking honey from every flower, 
in the plains and during the first part of the ascent, but they 
did not seem to mount very far up the mountain side. 
Pretty little black, yellow, blue, and grey birds flitted across 



i8o 



INSECT LIFE. 



our path, together with the brightest orange, pale-yellow, 
black and red and blue butterflies, dragon-flies, beetles, and 
other insects. We could not say we had actually seen any 
snakes ; but I fancied once or twice that I noticed one gliding 
away off the path, and felt sure that in all the pretty rocky 
water-courses, running through the damp plains which we 
crossed, many snakes must lurk. 

At every step, now, the scenery changed, till at last we 
emerged into an open space, planted with sugar-canes, bana- 
nas, sweet-potatoes, and other crops. Here we discovered the 
origin of some extraordinary noises we had heard on the way 
up, mingled with the much more harmonious songs of birds. 
A large flight of locusts was hovering about ; and, just as they 
do in Chili and Peru, and in fact all through South America, 
where these plagues ravage the country, the inhabitants were- 
beating tom-toms, tin trays, frying-pans, saucepans, and 
anything of the kind they could lay hands upon, besides 

shouting, blowing horns, and 
firing guns, to driye away the 
flight of ruthless devastators, 
whose brilliantly transparent 
wings, quivering and fluttering 
in the sunlight, glittered like 
silver snow-flakes. Beautiful 
as they are to look at under 
such conditions, the mischief 
these insects do is terrible to 
contemplate. In the present 
instance traces of their visit 
were only too apparent in the 
big banana-leaves, reduced to 
a single mid-rib ; the sugar-canes and other crops levelled to 
the ground, and every tree stripped of its leaves and twigs 
and smaller branches. Even the hardy wild-plantain (Canna. 




A HIGHLAND SCHOOL. 181 

indica) with its brilliant yellow stem and scarlet flowers — in 
shape like the prow of an ancient galley — was reduced to a 
bare stem and branches. Soon after this we reached another 
little habitation, one side of which was a school-house. The 
other we hoped might prove to be some sort of venta, or place 
of refreshment ; for by this time we were faint and famished, 
as may well be imagined, having started without any break- 
fast and without any stock of provisions; for we had relied 
on the assurance of those whom we consulted that the 
journey would only occupy two hours and a half. Unfortu- 
nately our hopes were speedily crushed. There was not even 
a puchero or a tortilla to be had; nothing more substantial 
than a glass of cold water— very grateful in itself, but not 
sustaining. While the mules were partaking of light fluid 
refreshment, and were resting in the shade of the palm-leaf- 
thatched verandah, we went to see the school, which I fear we 
all for the moment rather wished was a school of cookery, 
where dishes are occasionally offered to visitors not only to 
iaste, but to eat. Notwithstanding our disappointment, we 
were impressed with the fact that the establishment seemed 
to be conducted on excellent principles : the reading and 
writing of the pupils being highly creditable to both pupils 
and teacher. The latter, a very pleasant man, gave us two 
•curious flowers which had been brought to him as an offering 
that morning by some of his Tittle scholars. We did not know 
the names of the flowers ; and as he could not inform us, we 
•decided, owing to its peculiar shape, to call one the ' Crook 
flower of Caracas,' and the other the una-hora-y -media (an 
hour and a half) which period we were told the journey from 
Jiere to Caracas would occupy. Our hearts sank within us 
when we heard the news— at least, I can answer for my own, 
as I remounted my inferior and by this time very weary 
quadruped, and settled myself as best I could on my most 
xvncomfortable of saddles. 



APPROACH TO CARACAS. 



From the school-house we descended slightly, and, going 
along the neck of the pass, 7500 feet above the sea, we 
arrived at the spot about which we had heard so much and 
had come so far to see. Not exactly ' a palace and a prison 
on either hand,' but on either side Caracas or La Guayra, 
as the case might be, visible at once in the two valleys, one 
3000, the other 7500 feet below our feet. It was an extra- 
ordinary, but I can scarcely call it a very beautiful view. Its 
extent was very great, embracing many hundreds of miles of 
country, stretching far away into Venezuela ; but the land- 
scape was far too barren to be really picturesque. Sur- 
rounded by extensive plantations of sugar-cane, which made 
a bright oasis in the dry and thirsty plain, Caracas looked 
the very type of a South American town, laid out in square 
blocks, with streets, all running at right angles — north, souths 
east, and west — of low, one-storied, white, stone-walled, red- 
roofed houses, exactly the colour of the surrounding earth 
and mountains. An occasional church or public-building 
rose above the otherwise totally flat surface of the capital of 
Venezuela. Everybody we have hitherto met since landing 
here talks of it with the greatest enthusiasm as the most 
beautiful city in South America ; the reason for which, like a 
great many other things, I cannot understand. 

From the spot whence we beheld this extensive view, the 
path made a rapid turn, and we began to descend rapidly, 
passing on our way through an enormous drove of grey 
donkeys, carrying packages of goods of all sorts, brought 
by steamers to La Guayra for Caracas. By the' side of a 
stream at the bottom of the first hill, another large drove of 
donkeys, also heavily laden with barrels of wine and other com- 
modities, were being watered. The grey animals, with their 
grey loads, resting beside the brown river, which purled and 
bubbled over its stony bed, the green bank of the stream, over- 
grown with light-coloured ferns, the dark leaves of the coffee- 



A IV K IV A RD MIS TA k'E. 



plantation beyond, and the bright blue sky overhead, formed 
a striking scene, in which were many contrasts of light and 
shade and colour. 

It was here that a little incident occurred, which was 
rather amusing as it turned out, but which might have had a 
somewhat serious termination. Tom had walked down the 
hill, and had sent his mule on before him, finding that he 
could get along on foot much quicker than by riding. As we 
passed the herd, I thought I saw his mule feeding among the 




donkeys, and asked Allnutt to bring him on. He, having no 
stick, passed the message to Mr. Pritchett, who was still 
further behind, and who promptly seized the mule by the 
bridle, and dragged him along after him by main force. 
Soon he heard violent cries and strongly worded oaths in a 
language which, though unacquainted with Castilian, he 
inferred was Spanish, uttered by some one who was evidently 
pursuing him. He stopped, and by a strong mental effort 



1 84 ROCKY DESCENT. 



managed to comprehend that Tom's mule had gone on before, 
and that the animal he was now trying to carry off was one 
of the poor donkey-men's own mules. The aggrieved owner 
having to some extent relieved his outraged feelings by the 
use of the most forcible epithets he could think of, and the 
innocent cause of his righteous indignation having duly ex- 
plained (in dumb-show) and profoundly apologised, they took 
off their hats to one another ; and Mr. Pritchett cantered as 
gaily after us as the tired state of his mule would permit, 
fortunately before recourse had been had to the stern arbitra- 
ment of the knife. 

In about an hour we reached another rest-house, where 
we found some pretty birds hanging up in cages, including 
four little grey creatures with long tails, like American mock- 
ing-birds. From what I afterwards heard, they were, I 
believe, of the same kind as our liquid-noted nightingale 
songsters of the morning. I endeavoured to purchase them, 
but am sorry to say I failed in the attempt, chiefly because I 
was really too tired and exhausted to give proper attention to 
anything. From this point the descent by what had once 
evidently been an excellent paved road, but was now a mere 
mass of boulders and sand, heaped together higgledy-piggledy,' 
in sharp zig-zags, at an angle of about 45°, was exceedingly 
rapid. The sun w r as scorchingly hot ; and more than once I 
felt as if I really could not struggle one step further, but must 
throw myself off my mule under the shade of the very first 
tree or point of rock Ave came to, and lie there, if not to die, 
at least to faint. Anything so fatiguing as coming down that 
break-neck, rocky, sandy staircase of a road, I never experi- 
enced ; especially without any support from pommels or 
stirrup. I must in justice say that my poor little mule, 
though very tired, and stumbling constantly, picked his way 
most carefully, and carried me safely, though with many false 
alarms, to the bottom. Here, so tired and stiff as to be for 



ENTRANCE TO CARACAS. 



IS: 



the time quite helpless, I was lifted off and carried to a 
hospitable cottage, where I was refreshed by some cold water. 
This was exactly seven hours after we had left the yacht. 

Our journey, however, was not yet done. Poor Sir 
Eoger was very tired too; and when we remounted and 
jiiroceeded through the streets of Caracas, which we shortly 
afterwards reached, he was pursued by all the ill-conditioned 
curs (and a very ill-conditioned body they were), in the place, 
much to his annoyance and to mine also. Having lost my 
stick in the course of the descent, I had nothing whatever to 
keep the mongrels off with ; and as Sir Eoger took refuge 
under my mule's legs and my habit, I thought there would 
shortly be a real street pronwiciamiento, if not a revolution. 
The entrance 
to Caracas is 
by no means 
imposing, the 
transition 
from the open 
country to the 
streets not 
being marked 
by any walls 
or gates. The 
town itself 

looked very much the same when we approached it as it had 
done from the distant heights. On our way we passed a church 
which had been considerably battered in one or more of the 
many fights that have taken place here ; and also noticed some 
beautiful gardens, over the walls of which the flowers escaped 
in wild luxuriance into the streets beneath. I never shall 
forget a peculiarly bright blue ipomcea, which was one mass of 
flowers ; and a bright rose-coloured pink bellissima — a plant 
that, despite frequent efforts, has, I believe, never yet been 




ENTRANCE TO CARACAS 



HOTEL ST. AM AND. 



S 
introduced into England. It was just as if two curtains of 

turquoise blue and rose Du Barry had been thrown over the 

wall, and tied together here and there with a trailing wreath 

of leaves or sprays of white jasmine flowers. 

Our guide did not know his way in the least :. but, being 
far too proud to say so, he led us a wandering Polonaise a 
I'Espagnols all over the town until one by one the mules 
refused to move any further, and I insisted on asking the 
first respectable person that we met to direct us to the Hotel 
St. Amand. Here we ultimately arrived at half-past twelve, 
quite exhausted. It is a long, and desperately fatiguing 
journey from La Guayra to Caracas, even with good mules. 
We had very bad ones; but I think that in any case the 
traveller would accomplish the expedition more comfortably by 
taking a longer time about it, and by providing himself with 
refreshments to consume on the road. An early start —which 
is always desirable in the tropics —would enable one to loiter 
on the way and enjoy the beauties of the scenery thoroughly, 
instead of being compelled to press on as we had done, 
deluded by the fond hope and the false assurances we re- 
ceived that we were comparatively close to our destination. 
It is difficult to obtain correct information about anything in 
these countries, and the most extraordinary and inconsistent 
replies are almost always given to any question asked. It is 
un costumbre del pais, apparently — a local custom —to equivo- 
cate and to delude. 

When at last we reached the large Hotel St. Amand, we 
found that our telegram had been received, and that every 
preparation had been made for our arrival. We ex- 
perienced some little difficulty, however, in obtaining a bed- 
room, and, having procured one, we had still more trouble 
to procure the necessary appliances for washing our hands. 
The landlord had to go through an elaborate pantomimic 
performance, in order to make the waiter understand that 



BRITISH MINISTER'S HOUSE. 187 



'La Senhora' really must have a clean towel. I suppose it 
is not the custom of the country to provide such an article ; 
but they finally brought me six very nice ones. 

We supposed at first that the rest of the party who were 
to travel by the train from La Guayra had arrived at half- 
past nine, when they were due, and had breakfasted, and 
gone out; but on making inquiry we could hear nothing of 
our friends. We also had hoped to arrive about the same 
time, and to return from Caracas by the afternoon train ; 
but as that was now quite impossible, we decided — as Tom 
expressed it — to ' coil down for the night ' as we were, and 
return by the seven o'clock train on the morrow. After 
waiting some time, the three gentlemen went out in different 
directions to search for our friends. I was very thankful 
we had decided that they were not to accompany us, for 
I am sure our long rough ride would quite have exhausted 
those not well accustomed to riding, and would have been too 
much even for the children. The missing links turned up 
shortly afterwards, having had nearly as long a journey by 
rail as we had had by road. A heavy truck laden with 
machinery had been attached to the train, which the engine 
was quite unable to pull up the many steep inclines ; and 
they had consequently been rather more than five hours on 
their way, instead of the ordinary period of two and a half. 
The scenery along the line was described in glowing terms ; 
but the travellers' enjoyment of the trip had been materially 
lessened by the pangs of hunger that assailed them. 

Colonel Mansfield, our Minister Plenipotentiary here, who 
had heard of our intended visit, and who called to see us at 
the hotel, insisted on carrying us off at once to his own 
house, where luncheon was hospitably prepared for the whole 
party, and where I need scarcely say how pleasant it was to 
sit down at last to a well-appointed meal in a deliciously cool 
room. Colonel Mansfield introduced us to his daughter, with 



i88 



BOLIVAR MONUMENT. 



whom he lives almost entirely alone, as there is absolutely no 
society here — a want he deplores very much on her account, 
though they seemed very happy by themselves with their 
books and work and various occupations. 

After breakfast and a great deal of conversation, we were 
all so exhausted as to be obliged to beg for a little repose 
during the heat of the day, before proceeding for a long drive 
round and about the town. There is a fine Plaza, called 
Bolivar, after the illustrious general of that name, and in the 
centre is his statue, on the pedestal of which is the following 
inscription : — 



EL GENEEAL ANTONIO GUZMAN BLANCO, 

PRESIDENTS DE LA RrpuBLICA, 

ERUd ESTE MONUMENTO 

EN 1874. 



Simon Bolivar, Libertador de Venezuela, IsTueva 
Granada, Ecuador y Peru y Fundador de 
Bolivia. 



The monument is in honour of Bolivar, but nobody would 
think so unless he read the inscription very carefully. 

Caracas also contains some good gardens, a cathedral, a 
church or two, a bull-ring, and, of course, a very fine Presi- 
dential Palace - or rather two, one in the centre and one just 
outside the city. It seems rather a discrepancy that the 
President of the Bepublic of Venezuela should receive 50,000/. 
a year, while the President of the United States only has 
10,000/., and the Premier of England 5,000/. The present 
president, Guzman Blanco, is said to possess a private fortune 
of one million. Three beautiful country-houses are main- 
tained for him by the State, besides his residences at Caracas 
and a villa by the sea for the bathing season ; and altogether 
he lives in the greatest luxury, and rules as the most absolute 



PRESIDENT BLANCO. 189 

despot. Although nominally only President of a Eepublic, 
the Cortes, or so-called representatives of the nation, confer 
unlimited powers on him each succeeding year ; so that he is 




in reality an absolute dictator, allowing no one to dispute his 
will for an instant, and ruling the Venezuelans with a rod of 
iron. I dare say they require a firm hand ; and he certainly 
keeps them in better order, and altogether manages them 
more ably, than previous presidents have succeeded in doing, 
with the consequent advantage that there have been fewer 
revolutions in his time than in, that of preceding governments. 
Having been already re-elected three times, his period of 
office must, according to the constitution of Venezuela, expire 
next year ; and considerable anxiety is already felt in the 
country as to what will happen when he retires. Fifty 
thousand a-year is a big plum for any one man to enjoy, 
especially in a comparatively unimportant Eepublic like this ; 
and so long as this inducement is held out, there will surely 
be a certain amount of fighting and struggling for it. 

One or two examples of the arbitrary mode of government 
of President Blanco may be given. Soon after the railway 
between Caracas and La Guayra (in which he holds a great 



i go P UBLIC- GA RDENS. 



number of shares) was opened, he issued a decree that all 
vehicular locomotion on the excellent coach road, which had 
always been hitherto used, should be entirely stopped, there- 
by, of course, bringing grist to the railway mill, but throwing 
hundreds of people, with their mules and carts, out of em- 
ployment. A few days ago the resident engineer of the line 
reported to the President that a fish-plate had been placed on 
the rails with the evident object of upsetting the train on its 
passage over a very narrow viaduct, built by the American 
contractor who commenced, but did not finish, the line. 
General Blanco immediately, without instituting any inquiry 
with the object of discovering the offenders, and without 
making any distinction between rich and poor, ordered every- 
one living within a radius of half a mile of the scene of the 
attempted outrage — in all sixty persons — to be locked up for 
a month. Such a drastic measure will possibly have the 
desired effect of stopping similar crimes in the future ; but 
as regards its legality there may be a considerable diversity 
of opinion. More than one ultra-democratic American has 
been heard to say that he never saw, or wished to see, a 
country better governed in every respect than Venezuela, or 
a better-managed town than Caracas, to whatever cause this 
result might be attributed. 

The public-gardens in the upper part of the city are 
tastefully laid out and planted. They have evidently been 
modelled on the plan of those of Santa Lucia, at Santiago, in 
Chili, and command extensive views of the city and surround- 
ing country and mountains. At the highest point is a statue 
of the great man, Guzman Blanco, himself. The plains, 
covered with large fields of sugar-cane of a bright tender 
green, the exact tint of which I never saw elsewhere, are now 
looking their best. A few miles off, up the valley, is a nice 
little watering-place, where the President is at present stay- 
ing, at one of his country houses. In the public-gardens the 



LOCUSTS. 191 

same din was going on that we had heard in the morning on 
the mountains, with a similar object — that of driving away 
an army of locusts. As a matter of fact, the greater part 
of the horde of pests had already been dispersed or killed, 
although not until they had succeeded in stripping some of 
the ornamental trees of every leaf. The ground was strewn 
with dead locusts, among which I picked up one of the largest 
specimens I have ever seen. We measured him on the spot, 
and found he was exactly four inches and a half long from 
the base of the neck to the tip of the tail. I am sorry that I 
did not think of spreading out his wings and taking their size ; 
but he was slightly crushed, and somewhat greasy and nasty 
to handle. The bodies of these creatures are so full of grease 
that it frequently happens that they interfere with the work- 
ing of the trains if they get on the line. It is astonishing 
how very few, when crushed, will make the rails sufficiently 
slippery to prevent the wheels of the engine from biting, more 
particularly on a steep incline. To such an extent is this the 
case, indeed, that ' Train stopped by locusts ' is, I believe, not 
at all an uncommon telegram to be received at Caracas ; 
while the wages of the men who have to be employed con- 
stantly in keeping the rails properly sanded form a consider- 
able item in the annual expenditure of the railway company. 

Mr. Fraser had kindly offered to place a special train at 
our disposal at five o'clock, and to attach the President's car 
to it for our use. This arrangement enabled us to see all that 
w r as to be seen in Caracas, and to return to La Guayra the 
same evening. 

The capital of Venezuela is not a particularly interesting 
place, although it contains several spacious houses, besides at 
least eight churches, five convents, and a theatre. Its great 
recommendation is the healthy position which it occupies, in 
a valley at the entrance to the plain of Chacao, 2900 feet 
above the sea. This valley is watered by four small rivers, 



192 



CLIMATE OF CARACAS. 





the Guayra, the Au= 
auco, the Caroata, 
and the Catucho, 
from the latter of 
which the water 
supply of the city 
is derived. The 
climate of Caracas 
has been likened to 
a perpetual spring, 
and is, on the whole, 
very delightful, but 
it has the disadvan- 
tage of being ex- 
ceedingly variable. 
Still, the contrast 

between the atmosphere of this city and the stifling heat of 
La Guayra, only five or six miles distant as the crow flies, 
though more by the mountain-path, is something almost 
incredible. The mean temperature of the air is "2°, the ther- 
mometer rarely registering more than 75 in the hot season, 
and 66° in the cold ; although the temperature occasionally 
rises to 85 and descends to 5 2°. The changes, such as they 



EA R THQ UA KES. 1 93 



are, however, are very rapid, and it has been said that the 
inhabitants experience several seasons in one day. The rainy 
months are April, May, and June, but the downfall here is 
not so heavy as in many tropical regions. One great dis- 
advantage, which Caracas shares in common with a great 
many other parts of South America, is the frequency of the 
earthquakes to which it is subject. On March 26, 18 12, a 
terrible catastrophe occurred : nearly the whole of the city 
being destroyed, and 12,000 of its inhabitants perishing: It 
was Ascension Day, and the churches were crowded. The air 
was still, the sky calm, and nothing occurred to give warning 
of the fearful event which was imminent. Suddenly a shock 
was felt, sufficiently severe to set all the church bells tolling. 
Then all again became quiet, and it was thought the danger 
was past. But the hope was vain ; for in a few seconds after- 
wards a tremendous subterranean noise was heard, followed 
by a series of awful shocks, which nothing could resist. The 
grand procession, which always takes place on Ascension Day, 
had not yet begun to pass through the streets, but nearly 
four thousand people were killed in the churches alone. The 
barracks of El Quartel de San Carlos disappeared almost 
entirely, and a regiment of soldiers, drawn up under arms in 
readiness to join the procession, were all buried alive. 

Humboldt, in describing the event, says : ' The night of 
the festival of the Ascension witnessed an awful scene of deso- 
lation and distress. The thick cloud of dust which, rising 
above the ruins, darkened the sky like a fog, had settled on 
the ground. No commotion was felt, and never was a night, 
more calm or more serene. The moon, then nearly at the full, 
illumined the rounded domes of the Silla ; and the aspect of 
the sky formed a perfect contrast to that of the earth, which 
was covered with the bodies of the dead and heaped with ruins. 
Mothers were seen bearing in their arms their children, whom 
they hoped to recall to life. Desolate families were wandering 



194 SPANISH DOUBLOONS. 



through the city, seeking a brother, a husband, or a friend, of 
whose fate they were ignorant, and whom they believed to be 
lost in the crowd. The people pressed along the streets, which 
could be traced only by long lines of ruins. 7 

The cathedral, a large but by no means beautiful building, 
supported by enormous buttresses, was the only edifice of 
importance which escaped the effects of the earthquake. It is 
situated on one side of the Plaza Mayor, or great square ; 
the other sides being occupied respectively by the Archbishop's 
palace, a college, and a prison. In this square a market for 
provisions and fruits is held, and in an inner square, beneath 
a colonnade, are some of the chief shops of the city. 

One point by which the visitor to Caracas is impressed is 
the very large number of empty houses to be seen in nearly 
every street : the explanation being that the proprietors are 
too poor to live in them themselves, and too proud or obstinate 
to let them at a reasonable rent. The result is that, although 
there are plenty of houses wanting tenants, rents are as dear 
as if the supply were unequal to the demand. 

The railway-station, where we arrived in due course, con- 
sists of a series of long sheds with corrugated iron roofs. I 
remarked that I thought they must be very hot ; but the reply 
was, ' Oh, dear, no ! it is never hot here,' thus confirming 
wdiat we had already been told respecting the climate. 

Mr. Fraser mentioned to us, in the course of conversation, 
that the number and variety of the coins that pass through 
the hands of the railway company in the course of a brief 
period are very remarkable ; and he expressed his regret 
that it was not possible to buy up some of the oldest and 
rarest, as he was sure a valuable and interesting collection 
might be made in a comparatively short time. The old 
Spanish doubloons, or onzas de oro, have been made so 
familiar to us by Marry at' s novels, the stories of the pirates 
of the Spanish main, and the numerous rumours and 



LA GUAYRA AND CARACAS RAILWAY. 195 

romances of treasure lost and treasure trove — of rich galleons 
sunk with cargoes of countless thousands on board — of caves, 
the floors of which glittered with untold heaps of the precious 
coins, and where the explorers ' found bars of gold, and coin 
untold, and gems which to count were vain,' and have been 
invested with such a halo of romance, that it was curious to 
see these pieces of money — by irreverent travellers from the 
United States termed ' cartwheels ' — if not exactly in common 
nse, at all events in considerable numbers. 

The railway from Caracas to La Guayra is a wonderful 
piece of work — a real triumph of engineering skill over the 
difficulties of nature. I believe there is only one other like it, 
and that is somewhere in the Himalayas. Its great pecu- 
liarity is its very narrow gauge, of three feet. In other 
respects it much resembles the Oroya line in Peru, which 
rises 15,640 feet into the Andes (or about the same elevation 
.as the summit of Mont Blanc), and the line in Mexico from 
Vera Cruz to the City of Mexico, which, at a distance of 110 
miles from the sea, at Vera Cruz, ascends to a height of 8000 
feet, mainly on gradients of 1 in 25, and 1 in 33, occasionally 
combined with curves as sharp as 325 radius. The distance 
from La Guayra to Caracas as the crow flies, cannot be more 
than five or six miles :. but the line is twenty-three miles 
long • which fact will afford some idea of the turns and twists 
which it has to make. 

The scenery is superb. The curves of the line are so 
sharp that, as we stood on the end break, the engine looked as 
though it belonged to another train which was coming in the 
opposite, direction and was about to run into us. It was a 
wonderful journey, through splendid mountain gorges, with 
valleys opening out from them at every turn. Sometimes 
the line scarcely seemed to run on terra firma at all, the rails 
being laid on wooden brattice-work, firmly secured against the 
side of the mountain, with supports below like a sort of half- 



SHARP CURVES. 



bridge, over what appeared to be a fathomless abyss. We 
crossed many mountain torrents, on real bridges, all built of 
wood, bratticed with iron ; 
some of them very long, 



and all of course 

very narrow. In 

many instances 

the curves in 

the middle were 

so sharp that 

the carriages seemed to 

hang over as we turned ; 

and it appeared as if one 




MOONLIT LANDSCAPE. 197 



or two passengers too many on the same side might cause the 
whole train to capsize and topple over into the gulf beneath. 
I was very sorry when the light first began to fade, then to die 
away altogether, and the brief tropical twilight came to an end, 
leaving us nothing but the light of the bright young moon 
and the stars, by which to see the wonders of nature and the 
marvels of engineering skill. It really made one feel proud 
of the human race to see this triumph of mind over matter — 
man's ingenuity conquering nature's obstacles in this extra- 
ordinary manner. 1 Perhaps, after all, though we could not 
observe so many details, the general beauty of the landscape was 
enhanced by being seen by moonlight. I never beheld any- 
thing grander than the mountains or lovelier than the glens, 
all sparkling with fire-flies, as we glided down the steep incline 
towards the glittering sea, where the long rollers were slowly 
tumbling in and breaking heavily, in a long line of broad 
white surf. 

1 By the courtesy of Mr. James Livesey, the Chief Engineer of the La 
Guayra and Caracas Railway Company, I am enabled to give a few particulars 
of the line, which I think will be found interesting. 

' For a distance of nearly twenty miles there is a continuous gradient of I 
in 27, with a succession of curves and reverse curves, of 130 feet radius, from 
one end of the line to the other. To convey an idea of the aerial character of 
the railway at certain points, it may be stated that the line is there carried 
along a mere ledge cut into the face of the perpendicular rock some 3000 feet 
high and that a biscuit dropped from the train would fall 1800 feet before 
touching the ground. On such a railway, it requires a steady hand and strong 
nerve to conduct the trains, and both drivers and guards must be provided 
with means to meet all emergencies. The greater proportion of the traffic 
being " up," the waggons are all heavily laden. Each waggon carries as a rule 
from ten to fourteen tons, and is provided with two powerful brakes, a hand 
screw brake and an automatic continuous brake ; the apparatus being so 
arranged that both the engine-driver and guard have command over the train, 
or any passenger may in an instant put on the brakes throughout the tram. 
If, by accident, a carriage or waggon should break adrift, not only is the brake 
on that waggon instantly applied automatically by the very fact of its breaking 
away, but the brakes are applied throughout the train, which is then brought 
to a standstill. The engines weigh thirty-three tons each, and are capable of 
drawing up a load of eighty tons, exclusive of their own weight. The con- 
cession for the line having been granted in 1880, the work was commenced in 
January 1882, and was expeditiously executed by Messrs. Perry & Co.' 



DIFFICUL T EMBA RKA T10X. 



We arrived at La Guayra in an hour and fifty minutes 
after leaving Caracas ; having come slowly over several 
portions of the line in order to be able to admire the scenery. 
At the station I noticed, but did not like to speak to, a 'man 
whose arm, although supposed to be in a sling, was really 
without any support at all, and was hanging helpless by his 
side. I made some inquiries about him, and found he was 
one of the railway servants, who had been severely stabbed in 
a street brawl more than six months ago. His arm had been 
bad ever since, poor man, and was likely to remain so another 
six months unless it were better attended to. I therefore 
showed Mr. Fraser how to bandage the limb properly ; and 
subsequently took the opportunity of sending him from La 
Guayra an ambulance hamper, one or two books, and some 
papers. He expressed great interest in the work of the 
St. John Ambulance Association, and even if he should be 
unable to establish a centre in Venezuela, as he hoped might 
be the case, he may succeed in diffusing a great deal of 
useful information among the young Englishmen employed 
on the railway. 

The sea was so rough that, although our own cutter was 
waiting for us, Mr. Cage took us off once more hi the big boat. 
The embarkation was almost as tedious as our landing had been 
yesterday ; for only one person could jump or be thrown into 
the boat as it approached the shore on the top of each wave, 
and many of the party got wet up to their knees in the process. 

The difficulty of communication between vessels and the 
shore, in what is called the chief port of Venezuela, may 
appear remarkable ; but it must be remembered that La 
Guayra is a roadstead rather than a port. The sea is con- 
stantly agitated, the violence of the wind, the strength of the 
tideways, and the bad anchorage all combining to render it an 
unpleasant place for ships to visit. It is, moreover, as I have 
already mentioned, a very unhealthy place : yellow fever and 



I B B E A N 




Edw* Welle 




Plan of the 

RAIL WAY FROM CARACAS 

TO LA GUAYRA 

DISTANCE 22.6 ENGLISH MILES 

Railway thus ""^ 

Mute Trade , 

Pa>a3s ., ===> 

Th.e fiV/ttrr.s' iiuheale ttie height' 
in, EngU.sh feet ulttn'c setl> level- 



Ne\vYark:Htmry Hall A Co. 



MONGOOSES. 159 




typhus being more or less prevalent throughout the year. 
The mountains separating La Guayra from Caracas descend 
almost directly to the sea ; and it is upon the narrow, flat, 
intermediate strip of land that the town has been built ; the 
houses being backed by a steep rocky wall. It is by no 
means a picturesque place, and has no attractions of its 
own. Our sole object in visiting it was, of course, to make 
the wonderful journey to and from Caracas, and to see some- 
thing of the latter city. 

At 9 o'clock Mr. Cage came on board again with a pair of 
edible turtles — funny little creatures, about four inches in 
length, and nearly as broad as they were long. Two black 
mongooses, with light brown 
heads and necks, something 
like small polar bears in 
shape and action, but with 
long black tails like a fox, 
arrived at the same time : mongoose 

likewise a curious little 

white-faced sheep of Venezuelan breed, and three lambs ; 
besides ducks, chickens, pigeons, and doves. Meat will not 
keep more than a day or two in these latitudes, so that we are 
obliged to take a plentiful supply of live stock on board. 

An hour later we were under way ; the big shore-boat was 
brought alongside for the last time : we bade adieu to our 
kind friends, and our vessel's head was pointed towards 
Jamaica. But, unfortunately, the land-breeze, on which we 
had relied to give us a push-out from under the high land, 
had now fallen very light ; and, instead of going out to sea, we 
slowly drifted towards shore and were becoming almost im- 
perceptibly embayed behind Pedrera Point, to the westward of 
the Bay of La Guayra. Presently we heard a shout from 
those in the boat, who had seen our danger, and had come 
back to give us a friendly warning not to allow ourselves to 



VENEZUELA. 



drift ashore unknowingly, as might easily have happened, for 
the low coast was nearly hidden by the shadow of the high 
mountains behind. An unlucky frigate met with this fate 
a few years ago and was totally wrecked ; for, although the 
trade wind does not actually blow home under the high 
mountains of La Guayra, it sends a heavy sea, with tremen- 
dous force, on shore. We were advised to get a boat out to 
pull the yacht's head round if the land-breeze did not come 
very quickly. For about a quarter of an hour we were in' 
considerable anxiety as to the fate of the vessel ; then a few 
light puffs came, increasing gradually in strength, till, by 
midnight, we were well- clear of the point, and bowling along 
in the delightful and beneficent trade-winds, at the rate of 
some nine or ten knots an hour. 

Our stay in Venezuela was so short that 1 have only 
attempted to describe what actually came under our notice ; 
but perhaps a few particulars as to the country 'generally may 
not be without interest. The name of Venezuela (or Little 
Venice) originated with the first discoverers of the large 
lagoon, or rather, gulf— for it is connected with the sea by a 
narrow channel — of Maraicobo, who noticed that the villages 
.were built on piles in the midst of the water. A large part of 
the country consists of mountains, interspersed with vast 
llanos and wooded plains. With regard to climate, it is 
divided into three regions — hot, temperate, and cold. The 
first comprises all land of less than 2000 feet ; the second, 
that between 2000 and 7000 feet ; and the third all above 
7000 feet in height. The hot zone is by far the most exten- 
sive, and includes all the llanos, where the climate is tropical 
and where large numbers of horses, cattle, mules, and donkeys 
are bred. The principal wild animals were at one time the 
jaguar and the puma, but they are now rarely met with. 
Tiger-cats, tapirs, and ounces are more common, and the 
forests abound in almost every kind of monkey. 



INDUSTRIES AND EXPORTS. 201 



The industries of Venezuela are not very important. 
There are some gold mines on the Orinoco and elsewhere ; but 
they are difficult of access ; and the quantity of ore produced 
is not large, though the gold-fields themselves have been 
officially described as ' unquestionably the richest in the world.' 
Coarse cotton-cloth, hammocks, and straw hats are almost the 
only manufactures. 

In his report upon the finances and commerce of the 
country for the year 1881, Colonel Mansfield states that, 
although the public Budget exhibits a favourable aspect, the 
general wealth of the Eepublic is undergoing diminution. 
This he attributes to a great extent to the very low price of 
coffee, which has entailed heavy losses both on the cultivator 
and the exporter. The expense of transporting the coffee to 
the coast from the more distant estates is great, and until 
railway communication is opened between the interior and 
the various ports, it will be difficult for the Venezuelan coffee- 
grower to compete successfully with his Brazilian rival. The 
cultivation of cocoa is a more profitable industry. The Ton- 
quin (or, more correctly, Tonca) bean — the finest of the 
Dipterix odorata, so much in favour with our grandfathers for 
the pleasant scent which it imparted to snuff — is also grown 
in considerable quantities and with satisfactory results in the 
districts of Guayana. The principal exports of the country 
are coffee, cocoa, hides and skins, certain kinds of woods — 
specially logwood, zapatero wood, and quince wood — gold, sil- 
ver, copper, and minium. The divi-divi (Ccesalpinia coriaria), 
a small tree twenty or thirty feet high, is somewhat exten- 
sively cultivated for the sake of its pods, which are much 
used. in tanning. A considerable quantity of these pods are 
also exported annually. 

As hi the case of most of the countries of South America, 
the population, which numbers a little over 2,000,000, is of a 
mixed character, and is composed partly of the aboriginals 

A A 



POPULATION AND HISTORY. 



and partly of the descendants of the Spaniards and negroes, 
with many intermixtures and combinations. Some of the 
Indian tribes are still practically independent ; others acknow- 
ledge the established government ; while others, again, have 
become more or less civilised. About 35,000 foreigners are 
domiciled in Venezuela, of whom 11,500 are natives of Old 
Spain, and 4,000 British subjects, for the most part of West 
Indian origin, and employed in the mining districts. The 
United States are only represented by seventy-eight persons. 
The slave trade was prohibited in 1830, but it was not until 
1854 that the slaves were finally emancipated. 

Venezuela was for centuries a dependency of the Crown 
of Spain; but in 1821, after a long war with the mother- 
country, the independence of the colony was secured through 
the exertions of Bolivar, whose statue we saw at Caracas to- 
day. At first Venezuela was united with New Granada and 
Ecuador, and formed part of the Eepublic of Colombia ; but 
it is now an independent State, with a constitution modelled 
after that of the United States. 





CHAPTEK XI. 

JAMAICA. 

t 
The climate's delicate, the air most sweet ; 

Fertile the isle. 

Wednesday, November 7th. 

T noon we had run ninety -three miles on our course, and 
were still bowling along merrily. Six hundred miles 
from Port Royal, we saw the little island of Buen Ayre, a 



A 



204 , REMARKABLE SUNSET. 



dependency of Curacoa, about thirty miles off. Curacoa is one 
of the islands belonging to the Dutch, from which oranges are 
sent to Europe to be made into the well-known liqueur. It has 
a fine well-protected harbour, but is otherwise -uninteresting. 
The island of Buen Ayre is about thirteen miles long by three 
or four broad. The trees on the shore grow in curious little 
clumps, which look at a short distance rather like the martello 
towers on our own well-loved Sussex shores. Close to and 
just outside the town and fort of Buen Ayre is another islet 
called Little Buen Ayre. 

In the evening we had the delight of seeing the most 
remarkable sunset that I have ever beheld. In the West the 
sun was sinking behind a glorious pile of golden and rosy 
clouds, resting on a bed of daffodil sky such as I am sure 
(could we conceive such a thing as stellar consciousness) the 
morning star might love to fade in or the evening star to rise 
from, and which melted into the most tender blues and 
greens. Across this swept upwards a streak of deep red like 
a giant comet dyed in blood. To the southward was a 
tremendous mass of heavy clouds with a curious projection 
like a black island with a prominent headland. This 
imaginary island seemed to open at intervals and to admit 
a, flood of light, which illumined the headland and the sur- 
rounding sky with bright flashes of yellow sheet lightning 
and sulphurous blue forked lightning. To the eastward a 
grey cloud discharged a passing shower, while over our heads 
the young moon shone serene and clear in a cloudless blue 
sky, as if such things as rain or thunder-clouds had no 
existence. The whole scene filled one with wonder and awe 
at the mysterious loveliness of the atmospheric effects of 
nature. The night which followed was very fine, with a 
strong breeze. I went out on to the bowsprit with Tom 
to see the yacht tearing through the water at the rate 
of at least twelve knots. Every sail was drawing, and 



ESslN^ 




■K, 



js> 




: U 



i^^Wf?- ]'j£&k3£zS 



^ /// f ^. JAMAICA 




Aim- York:Henry Holt A Cc 



MARINE PHENOMENON. 205 

the curves of each were exquisitely graceful and full of 
beauty. 

Thursday, November 8th.— Another delightful day, with a 
pleasant breeze. About half-past two we approached a long 
stream of discoloured water ; and as the official sailing- 
directions impress strongly on the navigator the desirability 
of investigating any strange appearances in the possible 
vicinity of coral-reefs, in case a new shoal should suddenly 
have cropped up, orders were promptly given for the dinghy 
to be lowered, and Mr. Humphreys and two men proceeded 
to examine the phenomenon more closely. The sailors said 
it was caused by fishes' spawn, but this seemed very im- 
probable, and proved to be a mistake ; for when Mr. Hum- 
phreys brought back a bucketful of the water, and a small 
quantity was examined under the microscope, it became 
evident that the strange appearance was due to the presence 
of some vegetable substance. It was further reported that 
there were a good many cocoa-nuts floating in what looked 
like thick yellow scum; so that the discoloration was pro- 
bably due to a current from some river charged with vege- 
table matter. The breeze had fortunately slackened ; but the 
crew of the dinghy had a hard pull to catch us up, and were 
very grateful for the line attached to a life-buoy which we 
threw over to tow them in. 

Friday, November gth. — At noon we had made 219 knots; 
and although the thermometer did not show any great differ- 
ence in the temperature, the fresh breeze kept us cool and 
made us feel unusually lively. Baby made rather an amus- 
ing remark on Sunday to somebody who was grumbling con- 
siderably on account of the heat. ' It is only because you 
have nothing to do,' she said : ' you would be much better if 
you had. I feel just the same, because I have' no lessons 
to learn to-day.' It is quite true that the less the heat is 
thought of, the less it is felt, and that work is an excellent 



206 



FIRST VIEW OF JAMAICA. 



antidote for the sultriness, provided always that the full glare 
of the sun is avoided. 

Saturday, November 10th. — A fine sunrise was followed by 
black clouds and slight showers. At 7 a.m. we sighted the 




high land of Jamaica. Without altering our course, we closed 
with it and by noon were showing our colours to the light- 
house at Cape Morant, just on our starboard bow — not a bad 
landfall. 

Soon after passing Cape Morant, a pilot's boat (the ' John 
Ryan ') put off from the shore, containing a very pleasant- 
spoken negro pilot, who was full of information of all kinds — 
- whether correct or not I should hesitate to decide. Scarcely 
anybody in these parts seems to have any idea of time or 
distance : and most of the literature on the subject of the 
West Indies, many volumes of which I have perused during 
the last few weeks, is written from a statistical, 'romantical,' 
or ' missionarial ' point of view, and contains comparatively 
little practical information and advice. A sensible and 



BL UE MO UNTA INS. 



107 




accurate guide-book to this part of the world would be an 
immense boon, especially to travellers who have only a very 
short time to spend here. I wish Mr. Murray would send 
some capable person out to compile such a work. It would 
be a very pleasant occupation for the fortunate author, and I 
think that I should not mind undertaking the commission 
myself — for a consideration. 

Our first view of Jamaica impressed us greatly ; and no 
wonder ; for we were gazing on the celebrated Blue Moun- 
tains, which deserve all the epithets of admiration that 
have ever been bestowed on them. Rising from a richly- 
cultivated plain,, principally of sugar-cane, we could revel 
in the light and shade and colour of their sides and low 
peaks, intersected by fertile valleys ; while their summits, 
between 7000 and 8000 feet high, were hidden in masses 
of floating clouds and wreaths of driving mists. About 
two o'clock we observed an immense wall of black cloud 
advancing swiftly behind us — evidently a heavy squall of 
rain, driven before a strong wind. It was grand to see 
the storm-cloud rushing on, hiding the sun and lashing 
the waves into fury, while the peculiar hoarse roar of a 
tropical wind was heard in the rigging. We had by no 



208 



BLACK SQUALL. 



means too much time to make our preparations before the 
black squall was upon us. Our pilot was in a great state of 
excitement, and flew about wildly. Tom took the helm ; and 
the men let go the topsails, triced up the tack, lowered the 
peaks, and having all the ropes and gear ready on deck, 
reduced sail with the greatest possible rapidity. It was 
really a fine sight, though we could scarcely appreciate its 
full effect, owing 
to the sheets 
of ram that 
accompanied 
the squalls — 
a phenomenon 
peculiar to the 
tropics. The 
storm quickly 
passed over us 
without hav- 
ing done any 
harm, rushing 




on to the westward towards 
Kingston, past the chain of 
the Blue Mountains, which 
looked bluer than ever in 
contrast with the inky clouds. 



NEWCASTLE. 209 



When all the excitement was over, and I was busily 
occupied in making arrangements for landing, the pilot insisted 
on telling me a long story of how, just before he had caught 
sight of us in the distance, his men had captured a nice young 
shark, and how they had it in the boat when they came along- 
side, and what excellent things shark-steaks were. Although 
not particularly interested in the matter, I quite agreed with 
him, and expressed regret that we had not secured the 
fish in question. This did not seem to satisfy him; and 
at last I found out that his idea was to call attention to 
the fact that he had been about to dine off what he had 
evidently anticipated would be an excellent shark-steak at the 
very moment that he had sighted the ' Sunbeam,' and that, 
having been disappointed in his meal, he was now extremely 
hungry and would much like some dinner. It was one of the 
most circumlocutory ways of approaching a subject I had 
ever met with,. "but I think that the result was ultimately 
satisfactory to him. 

Port Morant and Morant Bay are a long way from each 
other and from the point of the same name, which is the 
eastern extremity of Jamaica. Passing by them and the 
richly cultivated plains and hills of St. David's, we reached 
Cow Bay, and saw the white houses of Newcastle, built on 
one of the many spurs of the Blue Mountains. Newcastle is 
the sanatorium of Jamaica, where most of the troops are 
quartered ; the situation being so high that the barracks look 
from the sea more like stones that have slipped off the top of 
the mountains and have stopped at the foot of the first gentle 
slope from want of sufficient impetus to go further, than 
veritable human habitations. The first view of Port Eoyal, 
of which we had not heard very encouraging accounts, agree- 
ably surprised us, and we really thought it extremely pretty 
as seenjby the evening light. The outlook across the gulf to 
Fort Henderson and Fort Augusta also had a very pleasing 

B B 



SHARKS. 



aspect. On the other hand, we were somewhat disappointed 
to find that all the tempting hooks, pieces of pork, and other 
bait, which we had hung out from the stern as we approached 
the land, failed to induce a single specimen of the tradition- 
ally celebrated Port Eoyal sharks to pay us a visit. We had 
been led to expect that they, having sent their pilot fish on 
before to report, like sister Anne, if any one was coming, would 
advance, like a shoal of dolphins, to meet us as we entered 
the harbour, and would attend us to our anchorage, scent- 



ing new prey from 
afar, and rubbing 
their noses gen- 
tly against the 
ship to suggest 
that they would 
like a few choice 
morsels thrown 
over as a propi- 
tiatory offering. 
An officer from 
the ' Urgent,' 
who boarded us, 




told us that the stories 
which we had heard 
were very much 
exaggerated, and 
that the sharks 
have decreased 
in number of late 
years. He had 
not seen one, he 
added, for many 
weeks. By way 
of consolation 
to those of the 




SEVEN BISHOPS. 2 ti 



party who had never beheld a shark in their lives, and who 
were most anxious to do so, he further remarked that this was 
the right time of the moon for the ' tigers of the sea ' to be 
about. Alligators, too, he said, were much less numerous 
than they used to be ; whereas I had been led to expect, 
from various accounts which I had read, that one had only 
to row up any river a little way from its mouth, or to pass 
through a mangrove swamp, in order to see quite a number of 
the huge creatures snapping their hideous jaws on either side 
of the boat. The Commodore (Captain Prattent), who visited 
us later, confirmed these statements as to the sharks and 
alligators, but could not give us much information as to the 
best way of accomplishing our proposed inland journeys, on 
which subject we asked his advice. He, however, promised 
to find out everything for us, and kindly placed his steam- 
launch at oar disposal during our stay at Port Royal. 

From sharks to lawn-sleeves is rather an abrupt trans- 
ition ; but it so happens that the chief topic of conversation 
on our arrival at Jamaica was the presence in the island of 
no less than seven bishops — the orthodox Revelation number 
— and there would have been nine, had not Bishop Holly 
been detained at his post in Hayti by the internal dissensions 
of that sable and unhappy Republic, which seems to be 
always in political hot water ; while the Bishop of the 
Bahamas was prevented from coming by the illness of his 
wife. The object of this unusually large gathering of church 
dignitaries is to hold a synod for the election of a primate for 
the whole of the West Indies. Advantage has been taken of 
their presence at Kingston to discuss the question of mission- 
ary enterprise in the various dioceses, and in particular to 
arouse public interest in the mission to the Pongas, in 
"Western Africa. 

A banquet in honour of the distinguished members of 
the colonial episcopacy is to be given in Kingston to-night, 



PORT ROYAL AT SUNRISE. 



to which entertainment the Commodore had been invited; 
and he kindly undertook to obtain for us some information 
respecting our proposed excursions from the friends he would 
probably meet. 

After a long sea passage, the weather-beaten yachtsman 
arrives in port tired and weary, and sorely needing rest. 
How grateful a few hours of uninterrupted repose ! But 
anxious civility sometimes denies the well-deserved boon ; and 
such was our experience this evening at Port Koyal. It was, 
accordingly, very late before we were able to go to bed. Even 
then the night was so lovely that one almost grudged leaving 
the deck, though I could hardly keep my eyes open. 

Sunday, November nth. — The aspect of Port Royal at 
sunrise did not by any means diminish my favourable im- 





pressions of the previous day. At 5.45 
the steam-launch came alongside to 
take four of the party to Kingston, about 
seven miles distant, to attend the early 
service at the cathedral, where three 
bishops, and I don't know how man} 7 
clergymen, officiated, and where there 
were over 200 communicants. A 
charity sermon of considerable length 
and force was afterwards preached by 
one of the bishops. 

To judge from the very primitive 



ON BOARD THE < URGENT: 



213 



mode still adopted of lighting the channels leading to Kings- 
ton, the casual visitor would scarcely suppose that it was an 
important port : but the trade of the place must in reality be 
considerable ; for before seven o'clock this morning four large 
steamers outward bound from Kingston— the ' Arran,' ' Alpen,' 
'Douro,' and 'Jacamar,' three English and one Spanish — 
passed us. Soon after nine o'clock Commodore Prattent and 
my cousin, Major Edward Woodgate, who is Brigade-Major 
here, but is doing the work of Adjutant- General, came to 
fetch us to attend service on 
board the ' Urgent.' We had 
a good sermon about flags 
in general, and those carried 
at the Battle of Hastings in 
particular, which was rather 
a curious coincidence. 

It was deliciously cool on 
board the ' Urgent 
through the large 
port-hole near 

which I sat I could 
see the greenish- 
blue sea lapping 
against the side, 
and little fish pur- 
sued by big fish 
swimming about in 
shoals. Presently 
I heard a great 
splash, which the 
man on watch told 
me afterwards was 
caused by a shark 
in chase of some of 




214 ADMIRALTY HOUSE. 

i 

the larger fish. After service we walked round, and Tom 
inspected the ship with the commander, Captain Tudor, 
Then we all went to breakfast with Commodore and Mrs. 
Prattent, at the Admiralty House, Port Pioyal ; a nice any 
residence, built with a view to catch every breeze that blows, 
not only from all quarters, but from each of the thirty-two 
points of the compass — an arrangement which is productive 
of the most delightful thorough-draughts. It is also fitted 
with numerous baths, supplied with clear-running water. 

The Admiralty House itself is surrounded by a luxuriant 
garden, and is airy and spacious. It contains several fine 
paintings by Sir Joshua Reynolds, one of which, a portrait *of 
Lord Rodney, is the property of the Jamaica Government. 
At one corner of the house is a square signal-tower, with a 
very steep flight of steps reaching to the top ; the view from 
which well repays the labour of getting there. In one 
direction the vista extends over the Palisades and the narrow 
neck of land connecting Port Royal with the mainland, and 
in another towards the distant Blue Mountains. The walls 
of the staircase of this tower have been papered by the signal- 
man, who is a very religious man, with large texts from 
Scripture. At the top we were rather surprised to find the 
only picture was a portrait of our old friend Mr. Henry 
Edwards, M.P. for Weymouth. I fancy that he must have 
shown some kindness to the signalman before the latter left 
England, and that it was in gratitude for favours received 
that the worthy fellow had hung the portrait in this place of 
honour. On the Palisades is the cemetery of Port Royal ; 
and the head-stones of the graves, like the tablets in the 
church, tell a melancholy tale of the ravages committed by 
yellow fever. I cannot help thinking that the town has 
obtained a worse character than it deserves, owing to the fact 
that ships bring their invalids from many other places and 
leave them here to die hi the hospitals. The negroes do 



CEMETERY. 



215 




not like going through the Palisades ; and after dark nothing 
would induce them to pass the mangrove-swamps or cockle- 
ponds, for fear 
of ' Duppies,' 
or ghosts, of 
which they 
have a most 
intense horror. 
Black crabs 
abound in 

the Palisades, 
and are very 
fierce. It is 
said that they 
will even at- 
tack men, as 
they march 
hungrily up 
from the sea 

in search of food. The cemetery, which was once a sad 
wilderness, is now carefully lodked after and maintained, and 
is tastefully planted with trees, shrubs, and flowers. There 
is a clean, well-ordered hospital at Port Eoyal, the prettiest 
building in the place, capable of accommodating 1 30 patients, 
though at present I am glad to say it only contains five. 

Close by the Admiralty House are some extensive turtle- 
pounds (or ponds), where a large number of these excellent 
creatures were snapping and flapping about, waiting to be 
taken out, cooked, and eaten. Prime joints, or rather cuts, of 
turtle, cost sixpence per pound, while a whole turtle can be 
purchased at the rate of fourpence per pound. Some were of 
enormous size, weighing five or six hundred-weight apiece, 
and even more. 

The town of Port Eoyal itself is a miserable place, though 



DOCKYARD LOOK-OUT. 



216 TOWN OF PORT ROYAL. 

it is reputed to have been, before the great earthquake of 
1692, 'the finest town in the West Indies, and at that time 
the richest spot in the universe.' It might be added that it 
was also the head-quarters of the buccaneers, and the store- 
house of all their plunder. The post-office is a most primitive 
edifice, the (negro) postmistress being even more primitive 
than the establishment over which she presided. The doctor 
spent more than two hours and a half at the office yesterday, 
in the apparently hopeless task of registering some letters. 
The postmistress did not know the rate of postage to charge, 
how to weigh the letters, or what the total postage amounted 
to : the necessary calculations and operations having finally 
to be completed by the doctor himself. All she could do was 
to produce some penny stamps, done up in sundry little 
screws of dirty newspaper, from various equally dirty. drawers. 
I only hope that the numerous important documents of all 
kinds that were intrusted to her dusky fingers may ultimately 
reach their destination in safety. 

Port Eoyal has indeed had a chequered history. Since 
the period of its greatest prosperity, it has not only been de- 
stroyed by the earthquake already mentioned, but, immediately 
after its restoration, by a terrible fire and an explosion of gun- 
powder, which took place in 1703. Once more the town was 
more or less rebuilt ; and again was it levelled to the ground — 
this time by a terrible hurricane, which, on August 22, 1722, 
swept most of the houses into the sea. This calamity was in 
time forgotten, and Port Eoyal became a flourishing place 
during the war at the end of the last century. ■ In 1 8 1 5 
another fire broke out, and destroyed nearly the whole town ; 
since which it has ceased to be of any commercial importance, 
though it has continued to hold the position of a strongly for- 
tified naval station. In 1880 a very severe hurricane was 
experienced, which did a great deal of damage, and the traces 
of which are still plainly visible. 



RELICS OF THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE. 



217 



L t 


iKM 


=— -^ 


rw§w 


1L-? 


1 




B 




lit" 


"^M^^^pl 


agr' ^ i 1 

^- .vt(..i- / 


i-jL 


SUB 


^jjggffiii 


l^aEBI 




s^x-™--.^^. - 




L ..!'-, 


==* 



At Green Bay, near Port Boyal, is the tomb of one 
Lewis Galdy, who was swallowed up by the great earthquake 
•of 1692, and who, as recorded on his tombstone, was, ' by the 
providence of God, by another shock thrown into the sea and 

miraculously saved by 
swimming until a boat 
took him up. He lived 
many years after in 
great reputation, be- 
loved by all who knew 
him, and much la- 
mented at his death.' 

The ruins of the ori- 
ginal town of Port Boyal 
are occasionally visible 
under water in clear 
weather ; and it is said that relics are 
often found among them by divers. 

The streets of the existing town 
are dirty and narrow ; and the smells 
which have to be encountered in 
passing through them are almost 
overpowering. The Port Boyal mos- 
quitos are notorious for their voracity ; . and our experience of 
to-day quite justified their evil reputation 

About one o'clock we embarked in the steam-launch, and 
proceeded up the narrow tortuous channel, marked by posts 
and beacons, to Kingston. As we approached we could see a 
great many ships in the harbour, most of them flying Ameri- 
can colours. One was a peculiar-looking schooner, something 
like the ' Sunbeam,' but with three steel masts all of the same 
length, one of them being hollow, so as to serve as a funnel 
for the small engine of 240 horse-power. A short distance 
from the town lay, high and dry, a steamer that had been 

c c 




218 SMART DRESSES. 



wrecked in the harbour and towed across to the opposite 
side. 

We landed at the market-wharf, where some buggies met 
us, in which we drove through part of the town on our way to 
the cathedral. Our first impressions of Kingston, which were 
fully confirmed by subsequent experience, were that it is the 
most desolate collection of tumble-down wooden houses, with 
rickety verandahs, leaning over rotten stone pavements and 
broken-down steps leading to streets full of holes and ruts, 
that we ever saw. No one would ever imagine that it is the 
capital of an important island and the seat of government. 
Always a miserable town, it has become ten times more so 
since the disastrous fire, which took place on December 1 1 , 
1882, and by which a great part of the business quarter was 
destroyed. On that occasion nearly 600 houses were burnt 
clown, the total loss of house property amounting to between 
150,000?. and 200,000?. Kingston has, like Port Eoyal, the 
original capital of the island, been very unfortunate in the 
way of conflagrations, having been partially destroyed on 
four separate occasions. 

The cathedral, or, rather, the parish church, as it is here 
called, is an old-fashioned brick building, with no pretensions, 
to architectural beauty. When we arrived, the second service 
— which must have been a very long one, for it began at 
eleven and now it was considerably past two — was just over. 
The appearance of the congregation, as seen on entering 
the church, was that of an ordinary London assemblage of 
the same kind ; but when the worshippers had finished 
their devotions and turned round to leave the church, it 
was strange and even startling to observe that the dainty 
clothes and dashing bonnets and feathers of the ladies were 
worn by jet-black negr esses with woolly hair, chignons not 
always to match, and powdered faces. Half grotesque, half 
ghastly is the effect produced by violet powder, applied by a 



TOMB OF ADMIRAL BENBOW. 



219 



negress just as a white person might use rouge. It would be 
difficult to imagine a droller sight to unaccustomed eyes than 
that of a smart dress, made in the newest fashion, draping the 
strapping limbs of a ne- 



gress, and of an equally 
smart and stylish bonnet 
encircling a coal-black 
face. 




Three of the bishops and the rector, Mr. Downer, were 
still in the church ; and the latter very good-naturedly showed 
us all over it. It contains some good monuments ; the most 
interesting of which is perhaps the gravestone of Admiral 
Benbow, who in 1702 received what ultimately proved to be 
a mortal wound in an unsuccessful naval action with the 
French Admiral, Du Casse. The tomb bears the following 
inscription : — 

Here lyeth interred the body of John Benbow, Esq., Admiral of 
the White. A true pattern of English courage. Who lost his life 
in defence of his Queen and Country, November y e 4th, 1702, in the 



WILD FLOWERS. 



52nd year of his age, by a wound in bis leg received in an engage- 
ment with Mons. Du Casse. Being much lamented. 

The church, as usual in the case of similar edifices in the 
West Indies, is fitted with high pews — most unsuitable for the 
climate, I should have thought — made of very beautifully- 
grained dark mahogany. 

The Kingston Parade Garden, close by, is full of rare 
plants, flowers, and trees ; the latter being in many cases 
covered with crimson, white, and yellow orchids, pines, and 
air-plants. In the basin of the central fountain were many 
large pink water-lilies, and some specimens of the sacred bean 
of India. From the Garden we drove through more unpaved, 
sandy streets, and past more untidy houses, till we reached 
the comparatively open country of the Liguanea plain, beyond 
the racecourse, where the road was bordered by hedges of 
cactus and dagger-plants, or by fences wreathed with jasmine, 
and light-blue and small scarlet convolvuli — the latter of so 
brilliant a colour as to be almost dazzling in the bright sun- 
light — poincetias of enormous size and the brightest colour- 
ing, lovely scarlet bois-immortel, and scarlet and yellow flam- 
boyante. The last-named, though now past its prime, has 
enough flowers left to show what its full beauty must have 
been. We were told that the present month is not the time 
for wild-flowers ; but I do not think that there is much to 
complain of irf this respect ; for beside the flowers mentioned 
there are many hundreds of other varieties to be seen : while 
a golden tinge is given to the whole landscape by the bushes 
of allamandas, now one mass of yellow bloom. 

We presently arrived at two cross-roads, and, turning off 
by a little lane, found we had arrived at Elm Tree Cottage, 
where Major Woodgate and Judge Curran (whose wife is at 
present in England) live together. Nothing could exceed 
the kindness of both our hosts in offering to place their resi- 
dence and all that it contained at our disposal during our 



THE BLUE MOUNTAINS. 




ELM TREE COTTAGE 



brief stay in Jamaica. Attached to the house is a small 
stable, containing two or three good nags, which are used 
as chargers and polo-ponies. Adjoining this are some out- 
houses ; and last, but not least, in one of them a stone bath, 
big enough for Moonie and 
Baby to swim two or three 
strokes in, and with a 
mountain-stream running 
right through it ; so that it 
is always full to the brim 
with fresh water as cool as 
can be expected in this 
climate, and clear and 
sparkling, except after rain, 
when the torrent brings 
down mud from the high 
mountains. On each side 
of the windows in front of 

the house are two fine specimens of narrow-leaved yellow 
crotons (angustifolia), which looked just like fountains of 
living gold, as the wind gently stirred their leaves. The view 
between them to the distant Blue Mountains, with their ever- 
changing hues and tints, is very grand. How anybody could 
have expressed a want of admiration of the Blue Mountains 
on account of their monotonous appearance I cannot imagine. 
During the short time we have been here I have never seen 
them for half an hour in the same likeness ; the lights and 
shadows are always changing, but always retain a blue colour 
of constantly varying gradations. 

As soon as it became a little cooler we went for a drive to 
Halfway Tree, the fashionable quarter of Kingston, to call on 
the Attorney- General and Mrs. Hocking, who live in a pretty 
little house, replete with every English comfort, and furnished 
with an amount of luxury and elegance which, bearing in mind 



TREES AND SHRUBS. 



the difficulty and expense of transport, and the climatic 
obstacles to be overcome, produced an impression of agree- 
able surprise. In the garden in front of the house, a 
great white creeper grows picturesquely over a mango-tree ; 
stephanotis and convolvuli, clerodendrons, bauhinias, and 
pea-shaped flowers {Leguminosce) of every colour, abound ; 
while beds of English roses, eucharis, tuberoses, and other 
hot-house plants are shaded by akees, with their pretty 
scarlet fruit, to say nothing of mimosas, magnolias, star- 
apples, and mangoes. These latter in their turn are covered 
with pineapples, air-plants, and orchids. Then we went to 
call on the Acting Governor, General Gamble, and found him 
sitting with Mrs. Gamble in a well-shaded room, surrounded 
"by bishops and other dignitaries of the Church, to whom we 
were duly introduced, but whose features it was impossible 
to distinguish in the very 'dim religious light ' that pervaded 
the apartment. This circumstance made no difference, how- 
ever, in the kindness of our reception ; and conversation 
soon became general, tea and cocktails being meanwhile 
handed round. Then the General proposed a walk through 
the house and garden. It is a fine large mansion with a 
dining-room built quite apart, connected with the house only 
by a passage without walls, open to the air on all sides, shaded 
by lofty trees and flowering shrubs, and still further protected 
from the rays of the sun by creeping plants, which surround 
and overhang the posts of the verandah. The garden is 
full of interesting plants, some of which were quite new to 
me, and. is surrounded by a park, or, 'pen,' as it is called 
here, of green turf shaded by mango-trees, which no doubt 
produce delicious fruit when ripe, for they are of the kind 
known locally as ' Number elevens,' which are quite the 'A. i ' 
quality in Jamaica. Unfortunately one mango crop is just 
over, and the other has scarcely begun ; so that we do not get 
very many, much to the children's disappointment — to say 



SUNRISE EFFECTS. 223 

nothing of our own ; for is not the mango one of the most 
luscious fruits that grow ? 

It was nearly dark when we bade adieu to our kind host 
and his friends, and drove out through the park and along 
a road fringed with lignum-vitae, jujube, and all sorts of 
interesting trees, till we reached Major Woodgate's house 
once more, where he and Judge Curran entertained some of 
us at a most excellent and very cheery dinner. The rest of 
the party who had not already gamed experience on the 
subject in the morning went to see what Miss Susan Burton's 
' Jamaica Hotel ' was like, and were well pleased with the 
result of their investigations. 

Later on we drove by another route to Market "Wharf, 
passhig finer buildings than those we had seen in the morning ; 
although nothing much to boast of, even with all the glamour 
of tropical moonlight thrown over them. We all met on 
board the launch, and steamed quickly back to the yacht 
at Pori Eoyal. 

Monday, November 12th. — At 3 a.m. I was awakened by a 
flood, not of silvery, but of golden moonlight. A little before 
five o'clock we were all in the launch again, en route for 
Kingston, some of the party singing ' We're off to Charles- 
town so early in the morning.' These very early starts are 
somewhat tiresome at the time, and are apt to result in 
fatigue and even exhaustion towards the end of the day, 
especially if no opportunity occurs of indulging in a siesta ; 
but the view of the dawn and of the sunrise effects is ample 
compensation for a good deal of trouble and inconvenience. 
The shades of blue on the mountains this morning, varying 
from darkest violet and purple to palest azure, and including 
china, indigo, turquoise, Japanese, dark, light, and pale blue, 
were exquisite. Never were mountains so appropriately 
named as these ; for not only their summits but their valleys 
were tinged and filled with every imaginable shade of azure. 



224 THE JAMAICA INSTITUTE. 



We landed again at Market Wharf, and packed ourselves 
into buggies — excellent carriages for this climate and for 
these roads. They are of American origin and are very 
light, running on four large wheels : the body being in some 
cases sheltered by a movable hood, when they are called 
' kittereens.' They hold three persons besides the driver, and 
a good deal of luggage. 

We passed the Jamaica Institute, one of the latest works 
of the Government of the island. It comprises a library, 
reading-room, and museum ; and the scheme of the Institute 
makes provision for the reading of papers, delivery of lectures, 
and the holding of examinations on subjects connected with 
literature, science, and art ; the award of premiums for the 
application of scientific and artistic methods to local indus- 
tries, and the holding of periodical exhibitions illustrative of 
the industries of Jamaica. The success of the new institution 
is now a well-established fact ; although the space devoted 
to the museum, which occupies the lower floor of Date-tree 
Hall, and contains an interesting collection of curiosities, 
corals, shells, geological and natural history specimens, is not 
by any means adequate to the purpose. Among the curiosi- 
ties are the bell of the old church at Port Royal, submerged 
during the earthquake of 1692, and an iron cage in which 
criminals were at one time confined and left to die of starva- 
tion. The library is on the upper floor, and is fast outgrow- 
ing the space allotted to it. 

In the Chief Justice's house close by maj T be seen, framed 
and glazed, the original papers referred to in a well-known 
West Indian story, which is narrated in Michael Scott's 
' Cruise of the Midge ' ; and which I confess I had hitherto 
regarded as a mere sailor's yarn. It is that of the pirate 
whose vessel was pursued and captured, and who threw his 
papers overboard during the chase. He and four of his crew 
were undergoing their trial for piracy, and the case for the 



UP-PARK CAMP BARRACKS. 



225 



prosecution had already been stated ; but there was a missing 
link in the evidence of their guilt, and the jury would re- 
luctantly have been obliged to acquit them, had not a ship 
arrived in port just at the critical moment, bringing the 
identical papers which had been cast away by the pirates,, 
and which had subsequently been recovered from the stomach, 
of a shark, hooked as the vessel was coming into port. 

We picked up Major Woodgate at Elm-tree Cottage, and 
drove with him to Halfway Tree, passing on our road the 
Up-Park Camp Barracks, which contain the headquarters 
of one of the West India regiments. These barracks are 
admirably situated in the best possible position for enjoying 
the full benefit of the sea breeze ; they also command an 
interesting view of the har- 
bour, and contain a fine 
swimming-bath of clear 
running water. The build- 
ings themselves, though 
large and airy, are not pic- 
turesque, but are eminently 
suited to their purpose. 
They stand, not on the 
ground, but on dwarf pillars 
of brick ; an arrangement 
which ensures a perfect cur- 
rent of fresh air and the 
thorough ventilation of the 
lower floor. A wide ver- 
andah extends along both 
stories on the south side of 
the buildings, shading them 
effectually from the sun, 

and affording a cool lounging-place for the men, quite open 
to the sea-breeze, which there is nothing to intercept. The 

D D 




226 JAMAICA BOTANY. 



officers' quarters are rather in advance of the main building, 
and are well arranged ; while in front of all are the field- 
officers' quarters, of more substantial construction. The whole 
group of buildings is surrounded by the parade-ground, which 
resembles a beautiful English park, covered with bright green 
turf and studded with splendid trees, among which tamarinds, 
the imposing silk-cotton tree, and the shiny-leafed akee, with 
its i^eculiar and beautiful red ovate fruit, are conspicuous, 
contrasting picturesquely with each other and with the dark 
blue, red, and white Zouave uniforms of the soldiers of the 
West India Kegiment. 

Thence we crossed the slopes of the Liguanea plain, where 
all the ' pens ' or country houses of the principal merchants 
and residents of this part of the island are built, to Gordon 
Town, about nine miles north-east of Kingston, near which 
there are some well-arranged and valuable Botanic Gardens, 
originally formed by Mr. Hinton East, and presented after his 
death to the Government by his nephew, Mr. Edward Hyde 
East. Considerable attention has been devoted to the subject 
of botany by the Government of Jamaica, and during the 
last century many important plants have been added to the 
resources of the island. It is remarkable that, although the 
vegetation is so varied and prolific, nearly every plant the 
products of which possess any commercial value has been 
introduced from elsewhere. The best varieties of the sugar- 
cane were brought here in British ships of war by Captain 
Bligh, late in the last century, and at different times the 
coffee-plant, mango, cinnamon, nutmeg-tree, cherimoyer, and 
many others have been introduced from more or less distant 
parts of the world, either by the Spaniards or by their 
successors. The scenery throughout the drive had been lovely ; 
but just here the foliage on either side of the river Hope (from 
which the water-supply of Kingston is derived) was superb. 
The effect of the great, broad-leaved, light-green bananas among 



LIZARDS WITH POUCHES. 



227 



the palms and the ferns on the other side of the river was 
■wonderful ; while the stream itself, rushing, and brawling, and 
forming miniature cascades at the bottom, was in places almost 
hidden by great bushes of datura (or pondiflora, as they call 
them here and in Chili), completely covered with large trum- 
pet-shaped fragrant flowers of the purest white. While we 

were waiting 
for the horses 
which were 
to carry us 
up the steep 
ascent that 
now lay be- 
fore us, we 
sat in a little 
wooden office 
almost over- 
hanging the 
stream and 
commanding 
extensive 
views on 
three sides. 







Here we were much interested in watching some little lizards, 
with * light-green bodies, brown tails, and curious bright 
orange-coloured pouches, which they could dilate and con- 
tract at pleasure, from the condition of being almost invisible, 



228 A MOUNTAIN ROAD. 

to the diameter of an inch. Nobody seemed exactly to know 
why they performed this operation ; but they looked exceed- 
ingly pretty as they puffed their red throats in and out, and 
ran up and down the walls. 

At last, after considerable delay, caused first by the tardy 
appearance of our Eosinantes, and next by ill-fitting saddles 
and missing girths, straps, and stirrups, the whole cavalcade 
was mounted and en route for Newcastle. We went along a 
very good road under shady trees till we got to the Picket - 
House, with its pretty gardens and its modest garrison of a 
sergeant, corporal, and eight men. This climate must be 
delightful to lovers of horticulture, for everything that is 
planted, whether belonging to the temperate or the tropic 
zones, seems to thrive ; and splendid beds of roses, carna- 
tions, lilies, and other familiar outdoor flowers, may be seen 
growing side by side with allamandas, stephanotis, caladiums, 
crotons, dracsenas, jujube, litchi, mangoes, and bois-immortel, 
and shaded by tropical trees, the branches of which are full 
of rare orchids. The mountain road to Newcastle is very 
good — as, indeed, it ought to be, for all the military and 
other stores are conveyed over it to the camp on the backs 
of mules. It looked so smooth and wide that I was surprised 
when the sergeant who led the way w T arned us to be careful, 
as a lady had fallen backwards over the precipice into the 
river a few weeks ago, and several horses and mules had met 
with similar accidents at various times. It seems, however, 
that the road, being cut out of the solid face of the rock, and 
then made up with a bank of earth, which is held together 
by vegetation, is occasionally undermined by. the rains, and 
at the least touch of a horse's hoof it crumbles away and 
perhaps hurls the unfortunate passer-by into the depths 
below. But the scenery was so beautiful, and there were 
so many interesting objects of endless variety to admire, 
that it was impossible to think much of this danger. We 



.ESTHETICISM AMONG NEGRESSES. 



229 



crossed and recrossed the river at frequent intervals ; the 
water at the fords running over a bed of stones, by the side 
of which negresses were busily engaged in washing clothes. 




I was sorry to notice that the influence of modern eestheticism 
(or what is impertinently called aestheticism) has penetrated 
even here, and that the negresses are rapidly giving up the 
bright red and yellow colours that suited them so well, and 
adopting duller and more sombre hues, not half so becoming 
to their dusky forms and features — if they only knew it. As 
we mounted higher, the road became narrower and more 
difficult. We were constantly riding round projecting corners 
of rock, overhung with orchids, where there was scarcely room 
to pass, or climbing up narrow rocky paths, almost like stair- 
cases, but always delightfully shady, and frequently bordered 
by fruit-trees, the civil owners of which seemed only too 
glad to offer us some of the delicious produce, generally 
refusing to accept any payment in return. Several times we 



230 



POLO. 



met horses and mules coming down, which we should have 
had considerable difficulty in passing, but that their owners 
were kind and considerate. Once we passed a whole string 
of polo-ponies going down to the Up-Park Camp, to be ready 
for their masters to play polo this afternoon. The game is 
very popular in Jamaica ; and polo meetings are held about 
once a week. Beaching a yet higher altitude, we emerged 
from the grateful shade of the trees, and the heat became 
intense ; but at last we arrived at a neck of the' mountain 
commanding views over land and sea, with a pretty little 
church on the opposite side of the valley occupying a wooded 
knoll in the foreground. Here we rested for a time and en- 
joyed a most refreshing breeze. Yet a little higher, and 
there was a complete change of landscape, which was now 
even still more enchanting, extending to the Liguanea plains, 
Kingston, and Port Boyal : the bay in its unruffled placidity 
looking more like an inland lagune than part of the open sea. 
I suppose we must have appeared rather hot and weary 
when, leaving the cool forest glades lower down, we emerged 
on the bare mountain- side ; for several negro women of whom 
I asked the way replied, in what was evidently meant to be 
an encouraging tone, ' Oh, not too far, missy, not too far ! ' 




Even when we at last reached the town of Newcastle itself, 
the parade-ground and mess-house of the military canton- 



CAMP AT NEWCASTLE. 



231 



ment, near the summit of Mount Ararat — as the mountain 
on which they stand is called — seemed to be an interminable 
way off. The last mile always seems the longest, and this 
one appeared to be unusually lengthy, in the now blazing 
morning sun, and in our somewhat weak and weary state. 
But we were gladdened by the sight of gay gardens surround- 
ing the distant houses, and it was not long before we found 
ourselves at our destination. 

The camp at Newcastle is the station of the white troops 
in Jamaica, who consist generally of a battalion of a regiment 




and part of a battery of artillery. It is situated about 4000 
feet from the level of the sea. We were much amused by 
the inscriptions over the officers' quarters, which are all dis- 
tinguished by sign-boards suspended from adjacent trees, and 
bearing such names as 'Poverty Flat,' 'Jumbo's Lair,' 'The 
Penitentiary,' and ' The Ark ' ; the latter standing on the 
highest point of what is officially designated Mount Ararat. 



»32 



NEGRO RHYMING ALPHA BET. 



We were received by Captain Coxhead, who confided us to 
the charge of a nut-brown mulatto girl, who was most anxious 
to do all in her powder to minister to our wants, and who 
evidently pitied us very much for having undertaken the 
long ride we had enjoyed so much. She said she always 
made a three days' journey of it herself — one to Gordon 
Town, one to a friend's house half-way down the mountain, 
and then on to Kingston. Her language was very difficult to 
understand — more so than pigeon-English in China, though 
constructed on somewhat the same principle. The following 
rather amusing rhyming alphabet gives some idea of the col- 
loquial English of the negroes : — 



JAMAICA ALPHABET. 



A is 

B is 

C is 

D is 

E is 

F is 

G is 

H is 

I is 

J is 

K is 

L is 

M is 

N is 

O is 

P is 

Q is 

B is 

S is 

T is 

V is 

W "W 

Z is 

Gentleman. 
Pretty well. 
A big snout. 



an ass, 

a bntoca, 1 

a cat, 

a Drippy, 2 

an eel, 

a fiddler, 

a Governor, 

old Harbour, 

a gentleman, 

a Johnny Crow, ; 

a Killaloo, r ' 

a lizard, 

a monkey, . 

a nana- cap, 3 

a Oliphant, 

a pothook, 10 

a Quattie, 

a rat, 

a sneeak, 

a toad, 

a vervain, 12 

urra, 

old Zebedee, 



see him dar, luhar him tan, 

very bad man. 

him mean Maria. 

got eyeball like fire. 

you catch him at Ferry. 3 

play pretty very. ' 

live at King House. 

poor as church-mouse. 

very well bred. 

got a p 'eel head. 

good when him bile. 

tail quite pile? 

look at his feeace (face). 

trim with leeace. 

got too much snout. 9 

night him go out. 

beg you one. master, please. 

see him myop 11 dc cheese: 

creep in long grass. 

forrard and fast. 

make um good tea. 

declare I forget. 

mending him net. 



- Gliost. 3 Half-way between Kingston and Spanish Town. 

'•Vulture. ° A vegetable. ' Tail quite spoilt. 8 Nurse. 

10 Owl. " Gobble up. '- Vervain, tea said to be good for fevers. 



A PENITENTIARY. 



233 



The negroes have no idea whatever of the genders of 
grammar, which are perhaps not particularly important, or 
of tenses, which are much more so, especially when the 
conversation happens to refer to the subject of travelling 
arrangements. When informed that ' the coach did start to- 
morrow,' or that ' the tri- weekly boat shall start yesterday,' 
the intending traveller is left in a happy maze of doubt as 
to whether he is to deduce his information from the auxiliary 
verb or from the noun. 

Our little Abigail had by this time taken us down to the 
Penitentiary, a place which did not at all answer to its name, 
comfortably furnished as it was, and surrounded by a well- 
trimmed garden full of gay flowers and shady trees which 
kept it deliciously cool ; and, above all, plentifully supplied 
with absolutely cold, not tepid, running water, a luxury which 
can only be thoroughly appreciated when you have been for 
some time in the tropics, and, for some weeks, have not 
tasted thoroughly cold water. 

We were feeling fairly famished; and after completing 
our toilettes were quite prepared to do full justice to the 
excellent breakfast provided for us, including real fresh butter 
(this being the only place in the island where it is made, 
I believe), new bread, hot scones, pineapples, and other 
tropical fruits, beside more substantial fare. The officers 
were obliged to leave us somewhat suddenly, having to go 
down to parade. We had met a portion of one regiment 
going down to the parade-ground as we came up to the 
camp. 

If I had not previously enjoyed several opportunities of 
discovering the shying propensities of my steed ' Hector,' 
I might have met with a nasty accident ; but as I 
prudently took the upper, though wrong, side of the path, 
we merely went abruptly up a precipitous bank, from which 
we had some difficulty in regaining the path, instead 

E E 



234 FERN WALK. 



of violently running down a steep place into the valley 
beneath. 

After our long ride, a little repose in the comfortable 
hammocks slung outside in the verandah would have been 
very comfortable ; but ' to horse, to horse ! ' was the cry. We 
were bound to pay a visit to the far-famed Fern Walk, which 
I have longed to see certainly for the last thirty years — ever 
since, as a child, a dear old friend used to send me ferns 
from it, to take to the British Museum to be named and 
classified. I could hardly believe that at last my wishes were 
about to be realised, and that I should really see the dry 
skeletons of the past clothed in all their living beauty, and 
growing in their natural dwelling-place. Some of us were on 
fresh steeds, some on the somewhat sorry nags that brought 
us up, and some were on foot. We climbed higher and 
higher, losing the lovely views we had enjoyed from the 
windows and verandah of the mess-house, as we plunged first 
into the mist and then were fairly among the clouds. We 
passed through thickets of wild ginger, with long spikes of 
white and pale-yellow flowers, overshadowed by tree-ferns, 
raising their heads thirty or forty feet above ours ; while on 
the grassy road and on the thoroughly English-looking (I 
mean vividly green) turf on the banks alongside it — mingled 
with tropical ferns and lycopodiums of every description — 
daisies and buttercups, ragged-robins, stag's-head moss, and 
all kinds of familiar wild flowers flourished. As we ascended, 
and the ferns grew in beauty, so did the rain increase in 
force. But one could scarcely expect to find such' ferns as 
trichomanes, hymenophyllums, and many others growing in 
the greatest luxuriance and perfection at the edge of a 
Sahara ! It was evident, indeed, from the vegetation we 
were passing through, that these ferns would have hardly 
any existence, and would certainly not grow to their present 
magnificent luxuriance, except in an atmosphere of great and 



BARBECUES. 



235 



continuous moisture, accompanied by a certain amount of 
heat — the moisture being a most important element. When 
we emerged from the thick wood into the open country, and 

left the rain behind us, we gazed 
far away over coffee-estates 
extending for miles, and 
perched on pretty wooded 
knolls and hills dotted 
with barbecues. A 
barbecue is the 
name given, in 
Jamaica, to 
the house 
which con- 
tains the 
threshing- 
floor and 
apparatus 
for drying 
the coffee 
and pre- 
paring it 
for the 
market. 
At the present time the coffee-plants are full of berries, 
about the size of cherries, of many varieties of hue ; but when 
covered with large tresses of white flowers, almost hiding 
their dark bright glossy leaves, their appearance is even more 
striking still, making the hill-sides from a distance look as if 
covered with snow. 

On the opposite side of the valley could be seen the 
Government barbecue used for drying coffee, besides large 
plantations of cinchona, from which that useful drug quinine 
is derived. It really seems as though the cinchona plant 




FERN WALK 



236 CINCHONA. 



imbibed from the pure mountain air the benefit's which it 
imparts to the fever-stricken patient. The higher the altitude 
at which it is grown, the greater the virtues which it possesses. 
It flourishes and increases rapidly in the plains and lowlands ; 
but the bark is then of little or no use medicinally ; whereas 
every hundred feet of elevation adds distinctly to its curative 
properties. 

Cinchona, so called from its having cured the Countess of 
Cinchon from fever, but known also as Peruvian, Jesuits' 
bark, and quinine, began to be known in Europe about 1640. 
It was first introduced into Jamaica in 1861 by the British 
Government, which, at the recommendation of Sir William 
Hooker, sent for a supply of seeds direct from Peru and 
Guayacil ; and the first experiments in its cultivation having 
been successful, it was decided to establish permanent planta- 
tions on the St. Andrew's slope of the Blue Mountains, at 
elevations of from 5000 to 6000 feet. The five principal 
kinds of cinchona barks now cultivated in Jamaica are dis- 
tinguished by the names of crown, red, hybrid, yellow, and 
Carthagena bark ; and the elevations at which they may be 
grown most successfully vary from 2400 to 7000 feet. The 
Government of Jamaica, in order to encourage the cultivation 
of cinchona, offers to grant a limited extent of land at a 
nominal price to any person willing and able to embark in 
this branch of commercial enterprise, which, if carefully con- 
ducted, should prove very profitable, although it is probable 
that many years must elapse before the quantity of bark 
exported from Jamaica will bear comparison with the large 
shipments from South America and India. 

In Jamaica, as in Trinidad, the handsome copper-coloured 
dracsena, or dragon's-blood tree, is used everywhere to mark 
the boundary-line of estates. Its appearance is extremely 
graceful too, with its long thin line of leaves, now black as 
ebony as they lie in the shade, now bright scarlet under the 



THE DRAGON'S-BLOOD TREE. 



'■37 



influence of the rising sun, or rosy-red as the full light of 
his tropical rays falls upon them, or of still another and 
deeper crimson hue as the sun sets, casting a purple glow 
over the whole landscape ; or, again, when the leaves appear 
in their true colour of rich dark chocolate in the brief twilight, 
before they are lost to sight in the inky darkness, or are lit 
up by the radiance, golden rather than silver, of a Southern 
moon and stars. Surely Mr. Euskin must have had some 
such aspect of tropical scenery in his mind, when he wrote : — 
'Purple, crimson, and scarlet, like the curtains of God's 
tabernacle, the rejoicing trees sank into the valley in showers 
of light, every separate leaf quivering with buoyant and 
burning life, each, as it turned to reflect or to transmit the 
sunbeam, first a torch and 
then an emerald.' 

From this point, well called 
Bella- Vista, we pursued our 
journey along almost the nar- 
rowest path it has ever been 
my fate to ride over, above 
and through coffee-estates, 
which are here all planted on 
steep acclivities. There was 
scarcely space even for a pe- 
destrian, and the gentlemen 
did not always succeed in keep- 
ing their footing ; while how 
the horses managed to avoid a 
fall I do not know, though I 
suppose that they are accus- 
tomed to such work ; for they 
were obliged to put down all 

their four feet in a line, one after another, on a path about 
six inches wide. Of course there were occasional stumbles ; 




238 WILD FLOWERS. 



but with no serious result. It might well have made any 
one nervous ; but I reflected that probably many people had 
performed the journey safely before us, and that we might 
hope to do the same ; and accordingly I gave myself up to 
the enjoyment of the landscape, and of the sight of the 
garden flowers (as we should regard them in England) grow- 
ing wild at our feet, including cupheas, ageratum, and double 
briar-roses, irises, jasmines, and many others. Lemon-grass, 
so extensively cultivated in this and in other West India 
islands, for the sake of the sweet verbena scent which is dis- 
tilled from it, was here growing wild in profusion. "When 
rubbed between the hands the odour emitted by it is delicious. 

After about an hour we reached a not unwelcome gap in 
the ' fence ' as it is called here. The fences are not altogether 
unlike those with which we are familiar hi Sussex, save that 
in Jamaica the horizontal bars are stout bamboo poles run 
into strong loops made of their own leaves, no iron being used 
in their construction. 

The broader path and the shade of another portion of the 
Fern Walk were very grateful. Not even disagreeable were 
the mist and cloud which we shortly re-entered, and which 
seem almost always to hover over these tall forests after mid- 
day. Hence the great desirability of making an early start 
in undertaking a journey across the mountains. Now and 
then we snatched peeps into the valley beneath and over to 
the sea beyond, a view which would no doubt have been en- 
chanting had we been able to see it clearly. The orchids 
clung to the big trees in profusion, and grew in such regular 
order as to look as though they had been arranged by the 
hand of man. In one spot was a group of tree-ferns some 
thirty or forty feet down the bank. Their noble heads were 
quite below the level of the path, so that we could see their 
young fronds, eight or ten feet long, curled up like little birds - 
nests, and covered with what would be called ' pulu ' in the 



< the ark: 



South Sea Islands. I don't know what they call it here; 
hut it is something like the brown feathery substance sur- 
rounding our own familiar bracken. Over our heads w r ere 
many shrubs or rather trees, with large glossy leaves and a 
single white flower, which I think must have been genip trees, 
belonging to the cinchona family, and closely allied to the 
gardenia. These trees produce the delicious fruit called 
genipap, which somewhat resembles an orange. The delicate 
lace- or fringe-fern, something like Lygodinm scandens, grew in 
wild profusion, and almost threatened to envelop us in its 
twining tendrils. The path was evidently not much fre- 
quented ; and the large knives carried by some of the officers 
were occasionally most useful in clearing the way. 

Presently we emerged from the Fern Walk, and proceeded 
rapidly down the hill again, through daintily-kept gardens, to 
* The Ark,' as the residence of Colonel and Mrs. Hassell, situ- 
ated in the midst of one of the best of these gardens, is called. 
The house 
is very neat 
and comfort- 
able ; but Mrs. 
Hassell is un- 
fortunately a 
great invalid 
and rarely 
leaves home. 
There is a 
saying among 
military men 
to the effect 
that ' the first 
year you are 

quartered in Jamaica you admire the scenery ; the second year 
you collect ferns ; the third year you go mad.' I am happy 




240 CEMETERIES OF NEWCASTLE. 



to say we have not met with anybody yet who has arrived 
at the last-named stage. At the Mess-House, where we went 
next, we found that the officers had come back from parade, 
and were ready to entertain us at lunch ; after which we 
prepared to start on our return journey. But the camp 
was now completely enveloped in mist, which shut out the 
splendid view ; the rain was descending in tropical torrents ; 
and our hospitable entertainers would not allow us to go. 
We accordingly spent two hours very pleasantly in looking at 
cases and albums of birds, moths, butterflies, beetles, ferns, and 
photographs, each collection having with great taste and skill 
been made and arranged by the soldiers. Some of the owners 
of these curios were going home shortly, and were consequently 
anxious to realise a little hard cash, so that we were fortunate 
enough to secure some good and interesting specimens. In 
the billiard-room was a fine alligator's skin, from the for- 
tunate possessor of which I was disappointed to learn that, 
if he had only known we wished it, he could, either early in 
the morning or at dusk, quite easily have shown us some 
alligators within eight miles of the spot where the yacht was 
lying. 

At last the rain cleared off, and we were allowed by our 
kind hosts to depart. Notwithstanding the fact of our being 
loaded with purchases and presents, we found going down 
much quicker work than coming up had been. On our way 
we stopped to see the cemeteries of Newcastle, of which there 
are three, all well kept and full of bright flowers. One in- 
scription excited my interest particularly : it was so simple, 
and yet so touching : — ' To Lost Mary.' On making en- 
quiries I found that the grave was that of the wife of the 
Colonel of a regiment formerly quartered here, who had died, 
after a few hours of intense agony, from the effects of a 
mistake made by an apothecary in the preparation of some 
medicine prescribed for her for a trifling ailment. 



A SABLE LANDLADY. 



241 



We continued to descend with a rapidity of ' slithering ' 
and sliding, which might have considerably alarmed a timid 
Amazon ; but fortunately without any catastrophe ; although 
my quadruped more than once made acquaintance with the 
mud, both with his nose and knees. The glorious view was 
ever before us, and the scarlet poinsettias and bois-immortels 
looked brilliant even in the grey evening light ; for, though 
we had left the rain behind, the moon had not risen, and 
the clouds were still heavy. At Gordon Town we found the 
carriages awaiting us, in which we were soon rattled down the 
hill to Elm-Tree Cottage, where a hasty and most refreshing 
bath and toilet prepared us for 
dinner at the hotel in Kingston 
kept by Miss Burton — a charm- 
ing old negress with all the man- 
ners of a lady, who nevertheless 
takes an active personal share 
in the working and management 
of her excellent establishment. 
The rooms of the hotel are large 
and comfortable-looking, and, as 
far as we could judge, are scru- 
pulously clean. Our hostess, at- 
tired in a snowy muslin gown, 
with a large white mob-cap of 
equal purity surrounding her 
coffee-coloured face, and with a 
pair of broad gold-rimmed spec- 
tacles on her nose, was the very 
picture and beau-ideal of a sable 
landlady. She assured us that 

she had with her own hands prepared many of the dainties 
that were set before us, in order that we might have an 
opportunity of judging of the merits of really good West 

F F 




242 



VISITORS TO THE < SUNBEAM: 



Indian cookery. I make no apology for giving the menu. 
They know how to cook in the West Indies. 




Before dinner was really over we had to hurry off to 
the launch, the rain at Newcastle having detained us two 
hours, and unfortunately made us very late. When we 
reached the Market Wharf we found a large party still wait- 
ing to go off to see the ' Sunbeam,' though many people had 
already been on board in the course of the day. Among our 
visitors were several bishops and other dignitaries of the 
Church, with their wives and families. I was very tired, and 
the children dropped off to sleep directly we got on board 



NON-INTOXICANT BEVERAGES. 243 

the launch, with their heads on my lap. Some delay was 
caused by the fact that the coxswain of the steam-launch, 
for reasons known only to himself, insisted on proceeding 
first to the Dockyard Wharf to land passengers before taking 
us on to the ' Sunbeam ' ; but ultimately the whole party 
arrived on board the yacht, which was brilliantly illuminated 
by the light of the Moorish and other large lamps. South- 
gate's cocoa-nut cream and tangerine-orange water ices, as 
well as Pratt's seductive ' cups ' (which, I notice, are not 
counted under the head of intoxicating beverages, either by 
the Mussulmans of the eastern or the blue-ribbonites of the 
western hemisphere) were immensely appreciated. 




CHAPTEE XII. 



ACROSS JAMAICA. 



Tuesday, November 13th. 

AS usual I was awakened at three by the golden light of 
the moon streaming into the cabin, and had, therefore, 
plenty of time to think about the long and somewhat com- 
plicated day's journey which Major Woodgate had been good 
enough to arrange for us. In his own covered buggy or 
kittereen, and three others, we were to drive some forty or 
fifty miles through some of the finest scenery of the island, 
from Port Henderson, by way of Spanish Town, Linstead, 



LAZARETTO. 245 

E war ton, and over Mount Diablo to Moneague, and Ocho 
Eios on the northern side. The ' Sunbeam ' was to start at 
the same time that we did, and to steam round the south- 
east end of the island so as to arrive, at five or six the same 
evening, at Ocho Eios, where Tom was to dine on board 
TLM.S. 'Dido' with Captain Vander-Meulen, and where we 
were to rejoin the yacht. We also had been invited to dine 
on board the 'Dido,' but as Major Woodgate's friend, Captain 
Cartwright, to whom he had written to inform him of our 
intended journey, had already been kind enough to ask the 
whole party to dinner at his house at Belmont and some to 
pass the night there, we could not of course think of breaking 
our engagement with him. 

It was a glorious morning, and the blue peaks of the 
bluest mountains in the world looked perhaps more enchanting 
"than we had ever seen them before, as we took our farewell 
glance at them and crossed the tranquil waters of the bay. 
The spars of the ' Urgent ' stood out boldly against the light 
sky, and at the entrance of the harbour a corvette was 
coming in, which we fancied looked like, and which proved 
to be, H.M.S. 'Fantome.' "We had last seen her when 
Captain Long commanded her, the day we left Honolulu, in 
1877. 

On our way to Port Henderson we saw the Lazaretto at 
Green Bay, opened on April 5, 1 881, on which date the pas- 
sengers of the s.s. ' Californian ' were transferred to the estab- 
lishment, having arrived from Panama, where the small-pox 
existed. The building is situated on a projecting rock at the 
north of the harbour of Kingston, opposite Port Royal, and 
consists of five blocks, which are used respectively for first 
and second class passengers', doctors', matrons', and servants' 
•quarters, kitchens and storerooms. 

We were not long in reaching Poit Henderson, one of the 
watering-places of Jamaica, where there are some excellent 



246 ' PORT HENDERSON. 

mineral springs ; the only drawback to them being that, in 
order to enjoy the benefit of their medicinal qualities, it is 
necessary for the visitor to live in a house built of the wood 
of the old flag-ship ' Aboukir,' which was condemned because 
crew after crew employed on board her died from yellow fever, 
with which her timbers were thoroughly impregnated. The 
' Tyrian,' another ' yellow-fever ship,' was disrated for the same 
reason ; although she is still used as a tug, worked by negroes. 

Our carriages, with the usual West Indian unpunctualhvy, 
were not ready when we landed, and did not appear for some 
time ; so that we had ample opportunities for observing the 
beauties (or otherwise) of Port Henderson. They did not 
captivate our fancy very much, for the town appeared to be in 
a somewhat decayed or decaying state. When the hired 
vehicles at last arrived, they struck us as being remarkably- 
like the town in the way of dilapidation. Indeed, it seemed 
a wonder that they could hold together at all, so worn-out 
did they look, so numerous were the fractures of the shafts, 
and splinter-bars, and so innumerable the straps and buckles, 
and ropes and knots by which they were held together. 
Moreover, instead of the three vehicles we had ordered, there 
were only two, which were not nearly sufficient to convey our 
party with all their belongings. After a great deal of grum- 
bling on the part of the drivers, and a considerable display of 
firmness and decision on ours, the ladies and children and. 
some of the luggage were despatched, leaving the gentlemen 
to follow. 

We proceeded first along the heaviest of deep sandy roads,, 
and through a dreary mangrove-swamp, with nothing what- 
ever to relieve the monotony of the scene but a few little doves, 
that flitted from tree to tree, cooing prettily, and an occa- 
sional mongoose that scampered across the road. These 
animals, having been introduced into the island to destroy 
the rats and the snakes (the latter I believe, never existed) 



A BREAK-DOWN. 



247 



have become an intolerable nuisance ; for they devour eggs, 
chickens, corn, sugar-cane, and everything else edible that 
they can light upon ; and the planters are now trying as 
hard to exterminate them as they did in the first instance 
to encourage this voracious variety of the ichneumon. At an 
unusually heavy piece of the road our horse - which was quite 
in keeping with the carriage ; all skin and bone, and with 
bones stickhig out to such a degree that it was marvellous 
that they did not break through their covering at once— made 
a greater exertion than usual 
of the very little strength it 
possessed, with the result that 
the splinter-bar and one shaft 
once more broke. The time 




occupied in repairing the damage was considerable ; and 
during the interval of waithig we were half devoured by sand- 
flies and mosquitoes, which hitherto had been content with 
simply teasing us. At last the patching-up was completed, 
and we proceeded on our way ; emerging from the mangrove 
swamp, and reaching a beautiful park-like ground, with 
hedges one mass of what here are wild flowers, but with us 
would be the choicest stove-plants, of which we should cherish 



SPANISH TOWN. 



every blossom. Allamandas, ipomaeas, stephanotis, and hun- 
dreds of other flowers, wreathed everything with gorgeous 
bloom, and scented the air with their luscious fragrance. 

As we approached the fine estate of Mr. Levi, we passed 
through a herd of magnificent short-horns, belonging to him ; 
and also saw a number of young thoroughbred horses dis- 
porting themselves in the paddocks with their mothers, while 
others, more advanced in age, were taking their morning 
gallop preparatory to the Kingston races, which take place 
shortly. 

At last, after a long drive — or what seemed to us a long 
one, although it was only eight miles — we arrived at Spanish 
Town, where we met with a most hospitable reception from 
Mr. Campbell, who is making a railway here right through 
the Bog Walk, and across the island ; an undertaking which 
is, I believe, accompanied by extraordinary difficulty. Nothing 
could exceed this gentleman's kindness ; and nothing could 
have been more welcome to us poor famished travellers than 
the good breakfast which was speedily placed before us. 

One of the luxuries which perhaps we enjoyed the most 
was the breeze wafted by the punkah, a contrivance which 
I wonder is not more frequently used in these hot climates ; 
for the heat is at least as severe as it is in Chi?ia and Japan. 
Mr. Campbell told me, much to my astonishment, that he 
and another East Indian were the only people who have intro- 
duced punkahs into their houses here. 

At last, after much delay, the whole of our party having 
arrived and breakfasted, horses and carriages were brought 
out to take us on our way. "While we were waiting, we had 
time to admire the trees in Mr. Campbell's garden, particu- 
larly the akee, a large tree somewhat resembling a mango, 
bearing glossy green leaves and large pod-shaped fruit. The 
fruit that was ripe was of a brilliant scarlet or crimson, while 
the colour of that which had not reached maturity, shaded 



AKEES. 249 

backwards (if one may say so) through every gradation of 
lemon and green, according to its degree of maturity. Its 
flavour is delicious ; but it is not fit to be eaten until it bursts 
spontaneously, showing its soft, spongy, creamy centre, called 
the ' aril ' which encloses three black seeds. This central 
2>ortion is excellent, either as a vegetable or a fruit ; but, on 
the other hand, should anyone be rash enough to remove 
the outer covering, instead of waiting for it to ripen and burst, 
however ripe and tempting it may look, it will be found to be 
a deadly poison. Three members of an English family, a 
mother and two little girls, died in less than twenty minutes 
after eating unripe akees only a few months ago, and there 
have been many other similar instances of its deadly effects. 
Its scientific name is Blighia sapida, and it was so called in 
honour of Captain Bligh, of the ill-fated ' Bounty,' who 
brought the bread-fruit from Tahiti. Besides the akce there 
was the beautiful flamboyante with its yellow petals and long 
stamens and nineteen and twenty-inch long pods, looking 
all too heavy for its delicate feathery branches ; and there 
w^ere, of course, stephanotis, bougainvilleas, poinsettias, 
crotons, hibiscus, and other plants that soon come to be re- 
garded almost as weeds here, to say nothing of begonias, 
caladiums, and orchids. The continual descriptions of vege- 
tation may . be a little wearisome and provocative of ' skip- 
ping ' ; but, skipped or unskipped, I cannot help breaking 
into rhapsodies of admiration of the flora of the tropics. 
There is a French proverb, you will remember, that tells 
you that when you are with wolves you must needs howl; 
and a lover of nature must needs be rapturous (without 
absolutely howling) when he gazes on the vegetation of the 
West Indies. 

The cathedral in Spanish Town is large, handsome, and 
well built, and is furnished with mahogany pews. It contains 

G G 



250 



THE CATHEDRAL, SPANISH TOWN. 



some very interesting 
monuments to members 
of well-known English 
families. The oldest 
stone slabs bear the 
dates of 1676 and 1682 
respectively. One of 
these, to the memory 
of Major-General Ban- 
nister, bears the follow- 
ing inscription : — 

That Death might happy bee, 

To live learned I. 
That Life might happy bee, 

I learned to dye. 

Another commemo- 
rates the name of 




the Beckfords of Fonthill, 
who held large estates in 
the island. 

The streets of Spanish 
Town, though presenting a 
somewhat deserted appear- 
ance, are not so squalid and 
miserable-looking as those 
of Kingston, and the town 
also contains some fine 
edifices. It was once the 



THE BOG WALK. 25; 



seat of the Government of Jamaica, to which fact the 
Parliament Houses and various other buildings still bear 
witness. 

A drive of about five miles brought us at last to the cele- 
brated Bog Walk, to the beauty of which no words can do jus- 
tice, nor can any description be adequate. Imagine everything 
that makes scenery lovely : — wood, rock, water, and the wildest 
luxuriance of tropical foliage, mingled and arranged by the 
artistic hand of Nature, in one of her happiest moods ; and 
then picture all this surrounded by lofty and abrupt preci- 
pices, with a background of the most brilliant blue, illu- 
mined by the brightest of suns (the heat of which on the 
present occasion was tempered by a gentle breeze which 
rippled the surface of the river). You will then have some 
faint idea of the scene which met our eyes. The Bog Walk is 
a gorge, through which the Bio Cobre flows towards the sea. 
The road. was all too short ; not being more than three or four 
miles in length. My nature is not utilitarian enough to 
enable me to rejoice in the fact that the beauties of this 
ravishing scene are on the point of being desecrated by the 
introduction of a railway; cleverly contrived no doubt, but 
still inevitably tending to deface one of the most charming 
spots on the earth with the traces of man's prosaic handi- 
work. The unfinished but well-laid line, with its strong 
embankments and wide track, meandering and winding, now 
011 one side of us and now on the other, reminded me, I 
hardly know why, of the slimy trail of a snail over a fair 
flower. But although it spoils the face of the scene for a 
time, it will hereafter confer great benefits on the rich, fertile, 
but comparatively little-known valleys on the other side of the 
island; for -vast tracts of rich country will be opened up, 
and their produce will thus be brought within reach of the 
European market. 

As we passed out of .the Bog Walk the sides of the ravines 



252 



LIN STEAD. 



became less precipitous, and were clothed with all kinds of 
tropical trees, such as the sloth, bread-fruit, and bamboos, 
besides vast quantities of flowering orchids. After a drive 
through a fertile valley, abounding in fruit of almost every 
species that can be imagined, growing in the richest profusion, 
we arrived at the village of Linstead, where we found that a 
market was being held, and that a large number of people — 




among whom the black ele- 
ment strongly preponderated 
— were all selling, or trying 
to sell, their little heaps of 
produce, with an amount of 
vociferation and gesticulation that could only have been ob- 
served among a crowd of negroes. 

In many instances the entire stock of merchandise con- 
sisted of not more than a dozen oranges, a few eggs, three 
mangoes, or four or five akees ; and the price of these was so 



THE MARKET. 



253 



trifling that in some cases, even when the would-be vendors 
did succeed in disposing of their wares, they had to combine 
with a neighbour in order to make up the equivalent of the 
smallest coin of the Island of Jamaica (a quotta — worth a 
farthing), which was all the purchaser was willing to pay. 
It may therefore be imagined that the haggling and ' chaffer- 
ing ' that took place on the subject of these interesting 
bargains was something remarkable. The types of faces that 
were to be seen differed widely. Some were really handsome, 
some hideously ugly; but the expression of almost all was 
cheery, bright, and good-tempered ; a circumstance which, in 
my eyes, covered a multitude of sins. The women all wore 
turbans of some fashion or another ; but the style varied con- 
siderably ; and I am sure that in the market square and the 
one main street of Linstead, at least thirty different ways of 
tying a turban on were observable. 

The sun was intensely powerful ; and we were all deeply 
grateful to a kind shop-keeper, who offered us seats in the 
shadowy verandah of his store, and sent a little girl to procure 
some oranges and other fruit for us. While we were enjoying 
them, I felt some sort of small animal run under my dress ; 
and, knowing that rats abound in Jamaica, I concluded that 
I was being favoured with the attentions of one of these 
creatures. Sir Eoger was evidently of the same opinion, for 
he made a pounce at the intruder and, I think, would soon 
have put an end to its existence if the shop-boy had not 
suddenly seized me by the foot and called out, ' Oh, ma'am ! 
please take care of Georgie : that my mongoose ! ' It turned 
out to be a baby-mongoose that had been reared from its 
birth by the boy, and was as tame as a kitten and accustomed 
to run about just wherever it pleased and to do exactly as it 
liked. It was a dear little thing, and I should not at all have 
objected to carrying it away with me ; but it was far too much 
of a pet to be easily parted with, and was, in fact, evidently 



254 JOURNEY TO MONEAGUE. 



regarded as ' quite one of the family.' We made large pur- 
chases of oranges at twopence a dozen, pine-apples at two- 
pence a-piece, and delicious mangoes at fourpence a dozen — - 
prices which, though they could scarcely he called exorbitant, 
were doubtless two or three times as much as we ought really 
to have paid. 

Having refreshed ourselves with these luxuries, and allowed 
the horses to rest, we again proceeded on our way, crossing 
and re-crossing the railway and the River Cobre many times. 
In every available nook and corner were pretty little cottages, 
small in themselves, but surrounded by large gardens planted 
wdth fruit-bearing trees, among which I noticed bread-fruit, 
cocoa-nuts, akees, mangoes, citrons, oranges, and pomeloes of 
enormous size. 

Oh the heat of that drive from Linstead, just in the very 
middle of the day ! The road was good, and the views de- 
lightful ; but the rays of the sun, unrelieved by the slightest 
breath of air, were almost insupportable. The poor horses 
were much distressed, and began to lag a little. The road 
seemed to be for ever lengthening, and Moneague, the place 
for which we were bound, appeared to our despairing minds 
to be getting further and further off, in spite of the reassuring 
evidence of the mile-stones that marked our way. In the 
distance we could see a plantation of tuberoses ; but we were 
not near enough to them to enjoy their sweet odour, which, I 
believe, is nearly overpowering when it proceeds from acres 
and acres of these flowers. This plantation is a speculation 
on the part of an ex-Guardsman, who cultivates the tuberoses 
with the object of extracting the perfume, and who is, I 
understand, succeeding very well in his enterprise. The 
orange-harvest was being gathered in several places ; and at 
the gates of all the orchards and gardens were standing long 
rows of the simple country carts, with only a plank bottom 
and sides made of rush mats kept up by stakes : some drawn 



OR A NGE HA R VES T. 



255 



by patient large-eyed oxen, others by less picturesque but 
more sturdy-looking mules. In many of the carts the golden 
fruit was already piled high, looking as if it were fresh culled 
from the garden of the Hesperides ; while the rest of the 
vehicles were being, rapidly filled by stalwart negroes, as- 
sisted by tur- 

baned women c- J "r~" , . ...,-;■; : " — ■%. >••, 
and children. 
As in the case 



of hop -picking 
at home, it is 
evident that 
entire families 
turn out to do 
w r hat they can 
in the way of har- 
vesting the oranges and 
loading the carts, 
not much packing clone up 
The fruit is taken to the nearest town or 
village, where it is carefully sorted, and where each greenish 
golden globe is enveloped in a maize-leaf and laid side by 
side with others in boxes for exportation. As we slowly 
climbed the long four-mile hill from Linstead to the pass 
of Mount Diablo, we met large numbers of these orange- 
carts coming creaking along the road, portions of their 
luscious loads escaping on each side and rolling down the 
incline and into the gutters. How juicy they were ! There 
is nothing so delightful as a really good West Indian or South 
American orange. Maltese oranges cannot be compared to 
them ; and I think some of those we tasted to-day were the 
best that have ever come within the range of an experience 
which extends to not a few of the ' Golden Groves ' of the 
world. 




256 RODNEY HALL COURT HOUSE. 

Not far from Linstead, at a place called Jericho, once 
stood the infamously celebrated Eodney Hall Court House and 
House of Correction, formerly known as the 'Hell of Jamaica.' 
The ruins of this happily extinct Inferno were pointed out to 
us. It was the scene of some of the most atrocious cruelties 
that were ever perpetrated upon poor slaves by brutal owners ; 
and the remembrance of the tortures of the unfortunate 
negroes cannot be recalled without a shudder. 

At one place where we stopped for a short time to allow 
the tired horses to rest, I was fortunate enough to find a 
beautiful white orchis, the centre of the odd spider-like 
flower of which bore a curious resemblance to an old man's 
face — very like old Father Christmas in fact — a nice cool 
refreshing person to think of on such a broiling day. Close 
by was an old wall covered with plants and creepers, among 
which we specially noticed an orchid, some of the petals of 
which were of a delicate eau-de-Nil green, while others were 
of a dark brown hue, spotted with yellow. Of the last we 
managed to secure a large root, which we hope, with great care, 
to be able to transport successfully to England. We also 
saw one of the useful nepenthes, with leaves curved up into 
the form of a graceful little vase, containing water for the 
. benefit of the thirsty traveller — a fact from which its pretty 
name of ' pitcher-plant ' is derived. The road commanded ex- 
tensive views over the plain throughout its entire length. At 
the summit of the Mount Diablo pass, 1 800 feet high, where 
the road crosses the Blue Mountain range, was a little rest- 
house, or drink-shop, at which we stopped to allow the horses 
and drivers to refresh themselves. The view from this point, 
or rather from a spot a few yards distant from the road, near 
the church, is superb, and is well worth a very long journey, 
even on the hottest of hot days. We looked on one side far- 
away towards the source of the Black Eiver, which is navigable 
for boats of a. considerable size for a distance of twentv-five 



ABORIGINES. 



257 




miles, and near the banks 
of which- are still to be 
met with some of the de- 
scendants of the original 
inhabitants of the island 
when it was first discovered by 
Columbus. That part of the 
island is now visited by but 
few travellers. All who go there, 
however, describe the people as 
very different to the negro popu- 
lation of the present day, and state 
that they appear to have inter- 
mixed but little; so that the 
original type of South American 
Indian is preserved. What a cruel 
and what a foolish and unneces- 
sary thing was the almost com- 
plete extirpation of these races 
from the islands of the Spanish 
Main ! 

It was hard to tear oneself 
away from a scene of so much 
beauty, but the sun was long past 
the meridian : in fact it was now 
nearly two o'clock, and there was 
no time to be lost if we wished to 
reach Ocho Eios before dark. 
Now, however, the worst was 
over ; the fiercest heat of the 
day was past; the horses 
were the better for their 
drink and rest ; and we 
were soon spinning merrily 

H H 



258 MO NE AGUE. 

down the hiil at a rate of some ten or twelve miles an hour 
to E war ton. 

By this time, notwithstanding the attractions of the 
scenery I have so vainly attempted adequately to describe, 
we were all beginning to feel considerable anxiety on the 
subject of lunch. It was therefore rather a blow to our 
feelings, when we reached the old inn — or 'lodging-house,' 
as inns are called here— about three miles past Ewarton, to 
find that the proprietor had given up providing ' refreshment 
for man and beast ' ; although a board bearing the announce- 
ment that he was prepared to do so was still nailed to a cocoa- 
nut tree, and another to the same effect hung between two 
enormous bushes, or rather trees, of poinsettias in front of 
the establishment. Not only were the trees large, but the 
leaves and the cherry-coloured bracts, which surrounded the 
comparatively insignificant flowers, were of proportionate 
size. One of these bracts measured over twenty niches in 
length, so that the entire flower formed a great starlike mass 
between forty and fifty inches across. It was a flaming bit 
of colour, as seen in the bright sunlight. Never had I be- 
fore beheld such a gorgeous sign-post to a village inn ; and 
though we should have been better pleased had the specious 
promises of the board been fulfilled, it was still some small 
consolation to enjoy the privilege of gazing on anything so 
beautiful. 

Another mile or two in the blazing sun brought us to the 
so-called town — though it is really only a straggling village — 
of Moneague, charmingly situated at the entrance to the Yale 
of St. Thomas. Here, with some difficulty, we discovered 
another ' lodging-house.' This time there was no board to 
indicate its whereabouts ; nor was anybody visible to do the 
honours of the establishment or to look after travellers in 
any way. Probably the inmates were all enjoying a siesta; 
but at last we routed up one or two sleepy negroes, got the 



VILLAGE INN AND STORE. 259 



liorses unharnessed, fed them, and proceeded to look after 
ourselves. Everybody, lent a hand ; and in a short time 
we managed to obtain some plates and dishes from the 
kitchen; the cloth was laid, and the table not only spread 
with the contents of our hamper, but tastefully decorated 
lay the young ladies of our party with the flowery spoils of 
the morning. The salad was duly made ; the various 
drinks — teetotal and otherwise — were properly cooled and 
iced, with a chip from the big block of ice which we were 
"taking, as the most acceptable present we could think of, to 
Captain Cartwright. 

It was fortunate that we had brought our provisions with 
us ; for though the rooms of the inn were well arranged, and 
looked clean and comfortable, and there were plenty of drink- 
ables to be had, no food of any kind was procurable ; and the 
landlady (who — poor thing— looked wretchedly ill from fever) 
did not seem at all inclined to make an effort to procure any. 
Towards the end of our meal some very sooty-looking cold 
fried eggs were produced, by a girl who, I suppose, was the 
cook of the establishment, and who, as well as we could 
understand her, apologised for their unusual appearance by 
•explaining that she had let them all fall into the fire, and had 
been occupied for some time — with the assistance of a little 
black ' piccaninny ' of about four years old — in fishing them 
•out again. Her story bore all the impress of truth, and was 
fully corroborated by the colour of the eggs and the state of 
the dish. 

Next door to the inn was a ' store,' as it called itself, where 
it appeared to be possible to procure a complete outfit both for 
the inner and the outer man — quite a West Indian ' Silver ' 
in fact — with the addition of a large stock of groceries of all 
sorts, a few fowls, eggs, bread, vegetables, and fruit, which 
were mingled with portable bedsteads, baths, macintoshes, 
perambulators, and such curious miscellaneous commodities 



260 ABUNDANCE OF WATER. 

that we could not help wondering who could buy them in a. 
so thinly inhabited and out-of-the-way district. I suppose 
that on market and fair days the planters come in from miles. 
round to make their purchases. 

The meaning of the word ' Moneague ' is ' a mountain of 
water ' ; and the village is well named ; for it is completely 
surrounded by clear streams which, like Tennyson's ' Brook ' 
' go on for ever,' and purl and bubble and gurgle to their 
hearts' content, making one almost feel cool to listen to them. 
One thing that specially impresses the visitor to the West 
Indian Islands— especially to Jamaica (or Xaymaca, ' the land 
of streams ') — is the abundance of water that is met with. 
The country never looks burnt up, but is always fresh, 
green, and luxuriant. The garden of the inn was full of 
tropical foliage, plants of the usual gorgeous reds, yellows, 
and browns, interspersed with the creamy spikes of the 
ginger-plant, the shell-like blossoms of the alpinia, and 
the snowy stars of various kinds of jessamine ; while blue 
and scarlet ipomseas and wax-like stephanotis climbed and 
twined all over and about the rough fence that surrounded 
the little plot. The ground was covered with patches of 
caladiums ; some of them in flower, too ; which was an other- 
new and great pleasure to me, as I had never seen them in 
bloom before. 

At the post-office we found a telegram awaiting us from 
Captain Vander-Meulen, containing a renewal of his invitation 
to us all to dine with him on board his vessel at Ocho Rios, 
and to await the arrival of the ' Sunbeam.' It would have 
been a most agreeable arrangement, and would have saved us 
much fatigue and trouble to have gone straight on board the 
' Dido ' instead of having to proceed three or four miles 
beyond Ocho Eios to Captain Cartwright's house ; but under 
the circumstances we were of course obliged to adhere to our 
original plan. West Indians are as justly renowned now, as. 



THE ' ROBBER OF MONEAGUE? 261 



of old, for their hospitality ; and it is quite the custom of the 
country for those about to undertake a journey to write pre- 
viously to people of whom they know little or nothing, to ask for 
food and rest, or for a night's lodging. Even this preliminary 
is often dispensed with, in which case the traveller may walk 
into a strange house uninvited, and may feel sure of a kind 
and hospitable reception. Not that this state of things is 
peculiar to the West Indies ; for almost everywhere we have 
travelled, throughout the world, people have always been 
good to us, and I often regret that we have not more frequent 
opportunities of repaying the kindness which we have re- 
ceived, and of returning some of the pleasure that has been 
given to us by so many newly- found friends, in both hemi- 
spheres, and in, many climes. 

Not far from the village we were shown the former retreat 
of the celebrated robber-chief, known many years ago as the 
' Bobber of Moneague.' He had originally been a buccaneer ; 
and on giving up that career, he took up his abode in the 
house that was pointed out to us, which he secretly forti- 
fied and converted into a sort of castle. Surrounded by his 
slaves, it was his practice to decoy unsuspecting wayfarers 
into his den, and there to murder them, apparently more to 
satisfy his savage thirst for blood than with the object of 
jobbing them ; for it was scarcely likely that these chance- 
fravellers would carry much money about with them. One 
of his intended victims, whom he had thrown into a gully 
and left for dead, fortunately escaped with his life, and 
betrayed the secret of the miscreant's retreat. The place 
was surrounded by soldiers, and the bandit was captured 
after a desperate resistance. Before he was hanged, he 
confessed, if not the whole, at all events the greater, part of 
his iniquities, placing the number of his victims at many 
hundreds. 

By the time we started from Moneague again it had be- 



262 VALE OF ST. THOMAS. 

corae quite cool and pleasant ; and our drive across the rich 
park-like vale of St. Thomas was most delightful. I do not 
quite know the reason, but the scenery was totally different to 
what I had expected. I had not realised how very English it 
would prove to be in appearance, and how totally unlike any- 
thing I had ever anticipated seeing in the tropics. Driving 
swiftly over an excellent though somewhat narrow road, fre- 
quently passing between low grey walls covered with a plant 
very like ivy, as the eye wandered over vast undulating 
savannahs of the most brilliant green, from which rose- 
splendid trees, no great effort of the imagination was required 
to enable us to believe that we were back in the old country 
again, and traversing some noble park. The turf looked fine 
and springy ; and it was only on close examination that the 
strange quality of the pasturage could be perceived. The 
greater part of it was a coarse-looking but sweet herbage, 
called Yassal's grass, which was brought originally from the 
mainland, and is much appreciated both by cattle and horses. 
Mixed with this vegetation in large quantities was Guinea- 
grass, which, introduced into Jamaica by the merest chance 
many years ago, has spread all over the island, and has been 
of the greatest service for grazing purposes. The first seeds 
were brought in 1744 from the coast of Guinea, as food for 
some birds indigenous to that place, which birds had been pre- 
sented to the then Chief-Justice of Jamaica. The birds died, 
and the seed that remained was thrown away in a field, where 
it took root and grew, to be afterwards grazed upon by the 
cattle. It is very hardy, and grows in stony sterile places 
where nothing else could possibly be cultivated. To judge 
from the condition of the brood-mares with their foals, which 
we saw feeding in large numbers, fetlock-deep in herbage, and 
of the cattle similarly employed, it was evident that the 
pasture agreed with them exceedingly well. Very fine cattle 
and good horses are bred in these savannahs, both for use 



OR A NGE- GRO VES. 263 



in Jamaica and for exportation to other islands. The oxen 
are small but strong, and are chiefly of the Spanish breed. 
The active little animals known as ' Creole ' horses are best 
suited to this climate, which is found to be very trying to 
North American and European steeds. In fact, the latter 
are not, as a rule, used here for very hard or rough work : 
both oxen and mules being largely used as substitutes ; 
although the strange spectacle of thorough-breds doing the 
work of cart-horses is occasionally seen. 

After the first surprise at the ' home-like ' character of the 
scenery had subsided, and we had had time to observe more 
closely the vegetation, we noticed that it had changed con- 
siderably since we crossed the Diablo Pass over the mountains ; 
though its tropical aspect, which had not been so apparent 
at a cursory glance, was of course still maintained. It was 
also evident that the trees were much larger than those 
ordinarily met with in European countries ; and that although, 
from a distance, their general appearance was familiar, their 
tall stems in reality rose from forty to sixty feet from the 
ground before throwing out a single branch. There were also 
large groves of mango trees, which, at first sight, looked some- 
what like Portugal laurels. Orange-groves abounded ; but 
the trees were bigger and were planted farther apart than we 
had ever seen them before. In fact, so large were they, that 
the cattle grazed under their delightful shade in the luxuriant 
pasture, cooled by the refreshing breeze which, as it gently 
stirred the shining leaves, carried away with it the fragrance 
of the snowy blossoms. Much to be envied were "those cattle, 
as they occasionally varied their grassy meal with a taste of 
the golden juicy fruit that hung above them. Not very long 
ago, a high-bred but I fear somewhat gluttonous cow, whose 
manners were not equal to her pedigree, and who had just 
arrived from England (having been brought out, at great 
expense, and with much trouble), not content with the rich, 



264 AN UNFORTUNATE COW. 



rare, and novel repast that was spread beneath and around 
her, must needs select an orange which hung temptingly down 
from the boughs above. She raised her head, stretched her 
neck, and nipped it off with her teeth ; when, alas?, it rolled 
down her throat, and, remaining there, firmly fixed, choked 
her on the spot, much to the distress of her master. He, 
being of a somewhat hasty temperament, immediately caused 
between 2000 and 3000 orange-trees to be cut down in their 
full maturity, in order to prevent the possibility of a similar 
accident occurring again. The proverbial person who cut off 
his nose to be revenged on his face could scarcely, I fancy, 
have acted more injudiciously : for an orange-grove takes a 
long time to arrive at perfection ; and the value of the fruit 
produced in Jamaica is growing steadily, in proportion to the 
increased rapidity of communication with less favoured climes 
and the greater facility of export. The spoiler of the golden 
grove is now endeavouring to repair his error by planting 
young orange-trees again ; but it will be long ere they arrive 
at a fruit-bearing age, and become equal in beauty and pro- 
ductiveness to their predecessors, so ruthlessly destroyed on 
account of the orange ' the old cow died of.' 

What a splendid hunting country this would make, and 
what glorious runs one might have over the grass of these 
sweeping savannahs, with nice little jumps over stone walls 
every quarter or half-mile or so— walls just the right height to 
clear comfortably, and apparently not too stiff! Here and 
there are a few growing fences, and several posts and rails, 
besides somewhat frequent but quite ' jumpable " brooks, which 
would give a pleasing variety to the sport. "We were assured, 
moreover, that there were no rabbit-holes in the fields ; and it 
was evident that there were no crops to be damaged. Quite 
an earthly paradise for hunters it would be, if only there 
were anything to hunt, and the climate were not quite so hot. 
The planters' residences are also few and far between on this 



ENTADA SCANDENS. 265 



side of the island ; and it would be rather a long ride from 
Kingston or Spanish Town to this spot, some thirty or forty 
miles distant, to meet at three o'clock in the morning, the 
latest hour at which, in such a climate, it would be possible to 
commence hunting. 

The character of the forest scenery to-day was very much 
affected by the growth of what we called the ' roof- tree,' until 
we knew its proper name— Entada scandens. It is met with 
in the northern valleys and woodlands of Jamaica, where it 
climbs up the tallest trees and spreads itself in all directions, so 
as to form a complete arbour. In some cases its ramifications, 
starting from one single root, cover a space equal in extent to 
an acre of ground, though the trunk is seldom more than 
eight or ten inches in diameter. It bears an insignificant 
yellow, bottle-brush, acacia-like flower, and has leaves some- 
what resembling those of a wistaria. The pods, which hang 
from its branches, sometimes reach the extraordinary length 
of eight or nine feet, with a breadth of about five inches, and 
contain from ten to fifteen hard, brown, shining, flattened 
seeds, called cacoons (Mafootoo wythe). I myself have seen 
one of these pods three feet long, which, from its curious flat- 
curved shape, I took at first to be a species of wooden cutlass. 
I remember that when we were at Kirkwall, in the Orkneys, 
a year or two ago, I was shown by a collector of curiosities one 
of the beans which had been cast up by the sea, but of which 
he did not know the name, though he fancied it came from 
Klorida. It had doubtless been brought thither by the Gulf 
Stream. 

It now became rapidly dark ; and once or twice, when we 
came to cross-roads or to a specially well-marked turning to a 
plantation, we had serious misgivings as to whether we were 
in the right way or not. We were, however, reassured by the 
drivers of some of the picturesque bullock-carts we met, who 
informed'us, in answer to our inquiries, that we were proceed- 

1 1 



266 GULLY ROAD. 



ing in the proper direction for the Gully Koad and Ocho Eios. 
The moon rose bright and clear in the blue sky ; the land- 
breeze was cool and fresh ; the horses had plucked up their 
courage wonderfully, and dashed along with our light carriage 
up hill and down dale at the rate of at least twelve miles 
an hour. So fleet, in fact, was their pace at times, that if 
one of our steeds had stumbled, or if an important strap had 
given way, it would have been a very serious matter. The 
bumps and shaking which we received were tremendous ; and 
more than once, as we flew round a corner — on two wheels 
apparently — or when our light, springy buggy crossed the 
numerous little stone watercourses, made to carry off the 
floods and torrents of rain that frequently fall on this side of 
the island, and make it so wonderfully fertile and park-like — 
we were nearly thrown from our seats. ' Sir Eoger ' I had 
lashed securely ' amidships ' ; but even he was often jerked 
from his position many inches into the air ; though, for- 
tunately — having, no doubt, been taught by previous painful 
experience — he always managed to return to the same place 
inside, and not outside, the carriage. It was a delightful drive 
through the cool, moonlit, fragrant air ; and our gallant little 
well-bred steeds galloped along as if they had only done ten 
miles instead of nearly fifty. 

At last we reached the culminating point of our expecta- 
tions, the Gully Eoad, which, in the way of beauty, far 
more than realised all that we had imagined. My heart fails 
me when I begin even to think of trying to describe that 
wonderful gorge, as seen on the most brilliant of moonlight 
nights — brilliant even for the tropics. 

Here Nature shows herself in her wildest and most 
romantic moods. The highest flights of fancy of the brush 
of poor Gustave Dore, or of the pen of Jules Verne, could but 
inadequately depict the fantastic beauty of the scene which on 
every side met our astonished and delighted gaze. To compare 



WA TERFALLS. 



267 



such a magnificent aid successful effort of Nature with any 
production of Art seems scarcely appropriate ; and yet the 
first idea that occurred to my mind was — what a charming 
transformation scene from the pencil of a Beverley, or what a 
splendid feature in one of those feeries so exquisitely produced 
in the theatres of Paris, the tableau that was now spread 
before us would make ! 
It was so mysterious 
and unconventional in 
its loveliness, and it 
had such a glamour of 
inexplicable unreality 
about it, due, perhaps, 
in great measure, to 
the effect of the bright 
semi - silvern, semi- 
golden light of the 
moon, shining through 
or illuminating the 
wreaths of silvery 
film that rose from the 
snowy spray of the in- 
numerable rills and 
rivulets, falling from 
the edge of the sharp 
precipices in a thou- 
sand cascades and 

waterfalls. Sometimes these tiny streams seemed to find 
their way unseen through the rock for a certain distance, 
and then to burst forth, shooting straight from the face of 
the almost perpendicular cliffs. The vegetation, watered 
from so many sources, was, as may be imagined, of extra- 
ordinary luxuriance, even for this land of profusion. It was 
impossible, in the course of our rapid drive, to ascertain with 




268 LIANES. 

precision the nature of the verdure ; but we could recognise 
masses of delicate ferns, shading each pool and rill, and them- 
selves overhung by glorious tree-ferns, their graceful feathery 
crowns poised on stems thirty or forty feet high. From 
among the ferns rose the giant stems of the silk-cotton trees, 
their buttress-like roots looking weird and wild indeed in the 
moonlight. Every crevice in the cliffs seemed to be filled with 
creepers ; while grand rope-like lianes, richly covered with 
orchids, swung gently in the cool night-breeze from the tops 
of the rocks, or from the branches of the tallest trees. Lower 
down, the wild-fig grew from tree to tree ; or, climbing and 
twisting round one alone, embraced it so tightly that it 
seemed as if it would in all probability shortly kill the object 
of its too close attentions. The variety of scenic effects was 
endless. Sometimes the rocks so nearly met over our heads 
that the branches of the trees above, closely interlaced and 
bound still more tightly together by our old friend, Entada 
scandens, and other twining plants, formed a thick roof, quite 
impervious to every ray of light. Now and again it seemed 
for a few seconds as if we were about to plunge into a 
bottomless abyss. Then we would emerge into a more open 
part of the gully, where the bright rays of the now fully- 
risen moon penetrated freely, casting the blackest and 
weirdest of shadows among the fantastically-shaped rocks 
and the abrupt and deeply-cut precipices, full of hollows and 
«aves and grottoes, and transforming — so it seemed to our 
quickened fancy— the spurs of the silk-cotton-tree into huge 
beams and props, and the great lianes into boa-constrictors 
and pythons, hanging by their tails to the branches of the 
trees, in readiness to spring across our path and to envelop 
us in their deadly coils. 

More dark 
And dark the shades accumulate, 

Like restless serpents, clothed 
In rainbow and in tire ; the parasites, 



ROAD TO OCHO RIOS. 269 

Starred with ten thousand blossoms, flow around 
The grey trunks. . . . 

The woven leaves 
Make network of the dark-blue light of day, 
And the night's noontide clearness, mutable 
As shapes in the weird clouds. 

The long feathery fronds of the tree-ferns, too, cast shadows 
that looked like dancing plumes advancing to meet one 
another from either side of the road. Then we would suddenly 
and unexpectedly come to a small savannah, where the valley 
widened out and lay peaceful and silvery-looking beneath the 
rays of the moon; while the dewy drops on every blade of 
grass and every leaf shot forth gleams of light, like brilliants 
of the purest water. The evening breeze was heavy with 
sweet rich odours ; a mass of snowy blossoms, or a bright 
patch of colour here and there, betraying the presence of 
Nature's laboratories, and the position of one of the many 
sources from which these overpoweringly sweet odours were 
wafted. It was indeed a dream of the fabled Elysium, a 
vision of fairyland; but, like all such visions, it quickly 
passed away from our eyes, as we emerged from the Gully 
Eoad and continued our way towards Ocho Kios. 

Even though we had lost some of the loveliest features 
of the scenery by not arriving by daylight, on the whole we 
probably gained by the lateness of our visit. It is certain 
that what we saw would not have been so enchanting and so 
astonishing — so thoroughly soul-inspiring — by day-light, as 
it had been by night ; and we were glad that our first view of 
the spot was gained under such favourable circumstances. 
To-morrow we hoped to pay it another visit and to examine 
more closely those trees and ferns and those long feathery 
plants and bright flowers. 

Once past this gem of picturesque beauty, it was not long 
before we came to the first of the eight streams which give to 
Ocho Kios its Spanish name. Cottages and bungalows became 



270 



OCHO RIOS. 



more frequent ; and at last we entered the small town or 
village itself. Our train of carriages at once attracted atten- 
tion ; and we were surrounded by quite a large crowd for so 
small a place. We anxiously inquired for some news of the 
yacht ; but nothing was to be heard of her. This was some- 
what disheartening, especially when the pleasing intelligence 

was added that a 
look-out had been 
kept for her all 
the afternoon on 
board the ' Dido,' 
and that, as she 
had not passed 
a certain point 
before sunset, she 
could not possibly 
arrive much be- 
fore midnight. I 
was so weary — as 
were also, I be- 
lieve, nearly all 
the rest of the 
party — that I 
would have given 
worlds to go on 
board the ' Dido ' 
and to be allowed 
to lie down on 
deck, or any- 
where, until the 

* Sunbeam ' appeared upon the scene. But that could not be : 
we had committed ourselves to a previous engagement, and 
must perforce fulfil it; for there was no inn — not even a 

* lodging-house ' — in the village. We accordingly left a note 




ROAD TO BELMONT. 271 

for the ' Sunbeam,' with the most sailor-like individual that 
we could find, announcing our safe arrival, and the consignee 
of our missive promised to take charge of and deliver it in 
case a boat should be sent ashore from the yacht on her 
arrival; though the prevailing opinion was that Tom would 
not like to venture on in the dark, and would anchor some- 
where beyond the point and await the daylight. Then we 
turned the heads of our reluctant and by this time nearly 
exhausted horses from what they had doubtless fondly 
hoped would be their resting-place for the night ; and pro- 
ceeded along the coast-road to Captain Cartwright's ' pen ' at 
Belmont. 

The road ran along the extreme edge of the sea, having, in 
fact, with much labour and difficulty, been cut out of the face 
of the solid rock itself, so that its foundations rest on the coral 
reefs and are gently laved by each wave as it rises and falls. 
The banks appeared to be richly carpeted and curtained with 
foliage, flowers, and ferns ; while overhead were cocoanut and 
other palms, which love the soft salt breezes of the ocean, and 
never attain their full, graceful proportions save when they 
are close to the shore. We proceeded for three or four miles 
along this charming road without seeing turning or gate or 
anything that looked like the entrance to a park; crossing 
many streams, under the road, cleverly carried on arches ; 
hearing the sound of many waterfalls, and occasionally 
oatching glimpses of their silvery streaks through the trees 
that grew upon the precipices above our heads, or descended 
on the other side, straight into the sea that was rolling in at 
our feet. Major Woodgate now began to feel a little anxious ; 
for it was nearly eight o'clock, and we ought to have arrived 
at Belmont at half-past six, the usual dinner hour in Jamaica, 
w T here darkness comes on early, and where everybody rises at 
dawn to enjoy and profit by the only cool hours of the day. 
By way of beguiling the time, and of enlivening us, he told us 



272 "ROARING WATERFALL? 

a ghastly story of some poor man who, driving along this same 
road on his way to dine at the same house, got belated, just as 
we had now done, but, unfortunately for him, on a dark instead 
of a moonlight night. In turning a sharp corner too quickly, the 
buggy was upset, and was precipitated on to the rocks beneath. 
The poor man's host waited and waited dinner for him, but 
he never appeared ; and the next morning his body was found 
in the sea under the buggy, which, together with the horse, 
had become firmly fixed among the rocks. But for this last 
circumstance his fate would in all probability never have been 
known ; for he and the horse and carriage would have been 
washed out to sea. 

At last we reached a waterfall more splendid than any we 
had hitherto passed. Never shall I forget the grandeur and 
magnificence of the cascade itself, or the fairy-like delicacy of 
the vegetation by which it was encircled and veiled. How 
impossible to convey with the pen — or even with the brush — 
the rushing, flashing force, ' the rocket-like velocity,' of that 
noble cataract, as it dashed over a steep place into the sea ! 
How far beyond human power to paint the flickering beauty of 
the moonbeams, as their delicate lines were reflected from the 
glassy sheet of water that swept onwards towards the verge 
of the precipice, before separating into a hundred smaller 
streams, that dashed over and among the broken rocks into 
the sea, with a noise like thunder ! The river being swollen 
by the recent heavy rains, this resonance, which has given to 
the cascade its name of the ' Boaring Waterfall,' was of course 
even louder this evening than is usually the case; to which 
fact we probably owed the discovery of our true position, 
which was close to St. Ann's Bay, and about four miles beyond 
Belmont. 

It was indeed only too evident that we had mistaken our 
way, and had now arrived at a point considerably beyond our 
proper destination. Although I felt sorry for the poor horses, 



GONE ASTRAY. 



2 7: 



and was tired enough myself, I could not regret that enchant- 
ing moonlight drive along the cocoa-nut-fringed sea-shore — so 
calm and peaceful, and with the rocks standing up snow- 
white from its placid surface. Neither could I regret the 
opportunity our mistake had afforded us of admiring the 
glorious waterfall — a thing ever to be remembered. At the 
first cottage where we saw lights we succeeded with great 
difficulty in rousing some of the inmates, in order to make 



1 




inquiries as to the route. Then, with still greater difficulty, 
we made them comprehend what we wanted to know; and, 
finally, with the greatest difficulty of all, managed to under- 
stand what they said in return — their English being decidedly 
imperfect. At last, however, we were made thoroughly to 
realise the disagreeable fact — which we had more than sus- 
pected — that we had over-shot our mark by a long way, and 
that it would be necessary for us to retrace our weary steps 



K K 



274 CAPTAIN CARTIVRIGHTS RESIDENCE. 



some two or three miles, to where we should find { some 
grass, and a heap of ruined masonry.' But first we had to 
search for a place where it was possible to turn round ; after 
which we trotted back as fast as our poor tired horses could 
take us, keeping, you may be sure, a sharp look-out for the 
masonry and the grass. When we arrived, after a consider- 
able interval, at what looked like a heap of stones, the driver 
jumped down, and, after examination, reported that he could 
* see grass ; ' so we turned to the right and climbed up a very 
steep hill, driving over a wide lawn shaded with large trees. 
It was just like crossing a roadless English park, though 
sometimes we were almost in danger of being swept out of the 
carriage by the low-hanging branches of the pimento trees 
(Eugenia Pimento), from which the pimento or allspice berries 
of commerce are produced, and which emitted spicy odours 
when we ran against them in the dark. 

The moon had disappeared behind heavy rain-clouds, and 
we only reached the house just in time to avoid a tropical 
down-pour. Captain Cartwright and all the family met us 
with kind greetings ; and we were relieved to find that the 
drivers of the other carriages (which had started behind us) 
had known the right way, and had arrived safely some con- 
siderable time before. 

In West Indian residences a good deal of space seems to 
be wasted, though, no doubt, a large and straggling style is 
best suited to the climate. As a rule the house is surrounded 
by a verandah, and a wide corridor runs through the centre 
of each, intersected by a similar corridor at right angles to 
it. These corridors are generally selected as the coolest place 
to sit in, though there are large airy rooms on either side ; 
and it was here that we found our host and all the party 
assembled when we emerged, from our somewhat small but 
comfortable chamber. 

We sat down to an excellent repast, very similar in style 



AMBROSIA. 



275 



to what we might have had in England, but served in a 
different manner. This was one of our very few experiences 
of planter's life, and it was most amusing to see on what 
familiar terms the servants were — not only with each other, 
but with their masters and mistresses — and how openly they 
discussed the merits of the various dishes, and the order in 
which they should appear on the table. The doors were, of 
course, all wide open, as is usual in these hot countries ; and, 
although the serving- table was concealed by a high screen, 
we could hear every word of the conversation between the 
servants, who contradicted one another so flatly and freely, 
and with so much animation, that it seemed as if they must 
shortly come to blows, though in reality they were only ex- 
pressing their opinions and laughing and chuckling all the 
time. Among other 
delicacies set before 
us was what — when 
we got it— proved 
(as it was only 
right it should do 
in order to justify 
its name) to be a 
most delicious dish 
of ' ambrosia,' the 
serving of which 
gave rise to a 
lengthy discussion 
between Dulcibella 
and George as to 
the position it 
should occupy, and 
as to the precise 

period at which it was to be placed on the table. Notwith- 
standing these amusing little episodes, I am afraid that we 




276 RETURN TO OCHO RIOS. 



visitors must have been regarded as rather a dull and sleepy 
party. It was not only physical but mental fatigue that 
oppressed us. My brain ached, and I felt quite dazed, and 
would have given anything to be able to retire at once, and 
to have the prospect of a few quiet hours of rest. 

As soon as dinner was over, we thought that we would go 
back to Ocho Bios, and try to find the yacht; leaving the 
children, who w r ere already sound asleep, to remain here until 
the morning. But unfortunately we were not to see the 
' Sunbeam ' again this night. The carriages, truly, were hi 
readiness, under the imaginary shelter of some silk-cotton 
trees, the branches of which were far too high to afford the 
slightest protection from the rain that was now pouring down 
in torrents. But where were the drivers ? They had 
vanished entirely, and prior to their disappearance had taken 
the precaution to turn the horses loose in the pen — a vast 
inclosure of some hundreds, not to say thousands of acres hi 
extent — thus precluding all possibility of their being found 
again in the dark. There was nothing to be done, therefore, 
but to gratefully accept Captain Cartwright's kind offer of 
the one spare room of the house, while the gentlemen of the 
party found quarters at Mr. Walker's cottage close by. 

Wednesday, November i/^tli. — Between two and four o'clock 
a heavy deluge of rain descended, accompanied by a tremend- 
ous storm of thunder and lightning, which woke all the pigs 
and poultry of the establishment, and kept them busily 
engaged in squalling, gobbling, hissing, cackling, and grunting 
till daybreak. At six o'clock we arose, and having' left a note 
for our host and hostess (who were not yet visible), we started 
for Ocho Bios. On the way we stopped to see Mr. Walker's 
thoroughbreds, four of which are in training for Kingston 
races, three very fine-looking chestnuts and a brown. Though 
rather small, according to our ideas of race-horses, I dare say 
they suit this country better than larger animals. 



OCHO RIOS. 



277 



We drove quickly along the soft green roads, catching 
occasional glimpses of the sea beneath, through the gaps 
caused by the hurricanes that had blown over whole rows 
of trees, roots, earth, and all, making straight lanes through 
the forest. How the dogs did enjoy their scamper over the wet 
grass ! I believe they thought they were back in England 
again, and wondered if they appreciated the loveliness of 
everything, refreshed and rendered fragrant by last night's 
rain. Arrived at the much-to-be-remembered heap of stones, 
we turned off to the right, and drove along the coast road 
towards Ocho Eios. If it was romantically beautiful last 
night, what can be said about it this morning, when, if it had 




OCHO BIOS FROM THE SEA 



lost some of its mystery, it had gained in all the 'exquisite 
details of fern and foliage. The rocks were fringed and 
curtained with maidenhair fern, varying in size from the tiny 
gracile, with its finely cut fronds, to giant reniforme and 
farnierise species, five and six feet long; not a mere black 
stalk, with a green tuft on the end, but branching out almost 
from their very roots in fine broad fronds. 

We reached Ocho Eios and the end of our pleasant drive 
all too soon, having caught sight of and hailed the yacht as 
we went by an opening between some cocoa-nut trees. The 
drivers of our buggies were ordered to wait to take some of the 



27 8 RETURN TO THE 'SUNBEAM? 



servants arid crew to see the Gully Road ; and pending the 
arrival of a boat from the ' Sunbeam,' we found ourselves in 
the centre of a closely attentive crowd, and the objects of 
what — when we understood them — were often very droll, and 
sometimes really ' 'cute ' remarks. Negroes are delightfully 
amusing and very observant and good-tempered. Their 
chatter and cheery 'yah-yah' laugh, and always-smiling 
lips and white teeth, are pleasant to the ear and to the eye 
under all ordinary circumstances; tiresome as the possessors 
of these agreeable features may be to deal with as servants. 

"Willing hands, ready to help to transfer our luggage from 
the buggies to the boats were soon forthcoming. Well, per- 
haps, it was that such assistance was to be found ; for the 
wooden pier was rotten and very slippery, and half the steps 
at the end were missing. While engaged in the operation of 
embarking, I caught sight of a centipede, eight or nine inches 
long, which ran out from among the broken planks and 
escaped into the water beneath. 

The heat of the sun had never appeared more intense than 
it did on this occasion. It is curious that in Jamaica the early 
morning seems to be much hotter than the la,ter portion of 
the day, and that the effects of the heat at that time are 
more injurious than in the afternoon. It is more dangerous 
to be exposed to the effect of its rays at 8 a.m. than at 3 p.m. 

On reaching the ' Sunbeam' we found that Tom was just 
on the point of going off to breakfast on board the ' Dido.' 
If we had only known the ' lie ' of the place last night, or had 
had a little more .time to make our arrangements, we might 
have saved ourselves and others much trouble and incon- 
venience ; for we could have hailed the ' Dido ' from the shore 
and, at any rate, have divided our party. It turned out that 
the delay in the arrival of the yacht was caused by the 
breaking of the valves of the circulating-pump, and by the 
consequent necessity of stopping to repair the damage. On 



H.M.S. 'DIDO? 279. 



H.M.S. 'DTDO.' OOHO RIOS 



reaching Ocho Bios, about half-past nine o'clock, rockets 
were sent up and guns were fired ; but the sound, though it 
reverberated through the hills for many minutes, and attracted 
the attention of the whole country-side, had failed to reach 
our ears. This was scarcely surprising, for Belmont is at 
least three miles off, round a point. 

After the luxury of a sea-bath and some breakfast, we 
also went on board the < Dido,' which is a fine ship of the 
corvette class, of 
1 760 tons, carrying 
twelve guns. She 
has been on this 
station between 
three and four 
years and has re- 
cently returned 
from Halifax. The 
visit to those more 

northern latitudes has wonderfully improved the health of 
the officers and crew, though many of them still look rather 
' washed out,' and as if they were suffering a good deal from 
the heat of the Jamaica climate. This is not to be wondered 
at, considering that the temperature of the officers' cabins 
varies from 86° to 90 , and that of the forecastle, when 
at sea and when the ports cannot be left open, from 90 to 
96 . We went all over the vessel, and found her, of course, in 
perfect order. Some of the cabins were very tastefully deco- 
rated, though all of them were overrun with cockroaches, many 
of which the officers said were nearly as big as mice — the 
result of the ship's prolonged stay in hot climates. There 
were only two or three men in the sick-bay, and they were 
suffering from the effects of accidents, not from illness. We 
found that there were several friends and sons of friends of 
ours among the officers ; though, unluckily for us,' some of 



280 NORTHERN COAST OF JAMAICA. 

them had gone ashore for a long clay's fishing quite early in 
the morning. Mr. James, one of the large landowners on 
this side of the island, had diverted the course of one of the 
streams, and the naval Izaak Waltons were to spear moun- 
tain-gullet first and then to net the rivers. 

In order that we might see by daylight the fine northern 
coast of the island, along which we were to steam, we re- 
luctantly and regretfully gave up the idea of paying a second 
visit to the Gully Eoad, and decided not to go on shore again. 
Having, therefore, said good-bye to Major Woodgate, who has 
been so Very kind to us, and has done so much to make our 
stay in the island agreeable, we weighed anchor at 11.30 a.m. 
and resumed our voyage. It was necessary at first to go a 
considerable distance out of our course, in order to clear the 
coral-reef; having succeeded in which intent, we proceeded 
to the eastward along the coast, the beauties of which w r e 
should perhaps have appreciated even more fully, had we not 
encountered a strong head-wind and sea, which caused us to 
pitch most unpleasantly. We passed Frankfort Point, Cabica 
Bay, Port Maria, with the pretty little island of Cabrita just 
outside, keeping quite close inshore to Blowing Point, and 
steamed on to Annotto Bay, where there is a fine waterfall 
called Gibraltar, formed by the Wagwater Biver, which falls 
between two perpendicular cliffs straight into the sea. I 
should have liked to go up Little Spanish Biver, in order to 
see the alligator-pond near Palmetto Point ; but, as usual, 
' time would not permit,' and we therefore continued our 
voyage, admiring the spurs that run down from the Blue 
Mountains and the valleys between them. Buff Bay, into 
which the Cedar Valley descends direct from Newcastle, con- 
tains, it is said, the most beautiful scenery of the island. 
Every valley on the north side is well watered by its own 
little streams, and in some cases by fair-sized rivers. From 
Buff Bay we were not long in reaching Hope Bay, and after 



PORT ANTONIO. 



!8l 



passing Eio Grande we slowed our engines off Port Antonio 
and entered one of the prettiest small harbours in the world, 
especially as we saw it by the light of a now rapidly setting 
sun. The town is situated in a picturesque bay, fringed with 
bright-green mangroves and overhung with cocoanut - trees ; 
while behind are low hills covered with tropical vegetation 
and with little houses dotted about upon their slopes. A 
little farther in the background tier upon tier of the ever- 
grand ranges of the lovely Blue Mountains rise high in the 




PORT ANTONIO AND HARBOUR 



air. The bay is quite landlocked, and is regarded by many 
as the future port of Jamaica. The country which we have 
seen from the sea to-day and the valleys that descend from 
the hills, form the great fruit-growing district of the island. 
A fruit-trade which is increasing rapidly and promises to 
develop enormously, has just been started with America. 
Fast steamers reach New York in five or six days, and the 
more southern ports of the United States sooner ; so that the 



L L 



282 OLD-FASHIOXED CHURCH. 



luscious fruits of the West Indies can be eaten in the less 
sultry North before the imprisoned sunbeams have had quite 
time to escape. 

On our way into the harbour we noticed the funnel and 
masts of a large steamer just showing above water ; and, on 
inquiry, we found that, while in quarantine about two months 
ago, she was run down by another ship and sunk at once. 
Bather a hard fate for the steamer ; but a very effectual way 
of purifying her ; for I should think she would be quite 
free from all infection by the time she is raised again, an 
operation which is about to be performed. At present the 
wreck somewhat blocks the harbour. We landed on the 
rocks, just at the edge of some short, springy turf, shaded 
with bread-fruit and other trees, which reminded us of 
Tahiti, and inquired for the post-office, where we expected to 
find letters. But we were greeted with the reply, ' Yah, 
yah, Massa ! everything shut here five o'clock ; no stores 
open after.' Fortunately a corporal of constabulary came 
to the rescue and kindly routed out the postmaster, who 
handed us a telegram that had just arrived, and took charge 
of our letters for England. Afterwards we walked through 
the village (where there was not much to see), to a large and 
substantial church, perched on a grassy knoll in the outskirts, 
and built in what might perhaps be called the ' Fahrenheit ' 
or ' Beaumur ' style of architecture, for the windows had 
exactly the effect of a row of gigantic thermometers hung on a 
blank wall. W T e had some difficulty in obtaining admission, 
the sun having now set and the moon risen ; but at last two 
little girls arrived with the keys and with two candles, by the 
light of which we proceeded to inspect the interior of the 
building. It was built about forty years since and was just 
like an old-fashioned English church, with .a deep gallery 
and with high mahogany pews made of beautifully grained 
wood. I should think it must be somewhat of the sultriest 



MEMORIAL TABLETS. 283 



of tabernacles in this climate. The first thing that met our 
eye on entering was a memorial tablet to the architect, Mr. 



VIEW AT POET ANTONIO 



Amesley Voysey, who, coming out in 1837, na( i barely com- 
pleted his labours in 1839 when he was carried off by yellow 
fever. Opposite to this tablet was one to the memory of 
the wife of a planter, the inscription on which struck us as 
so interesting that I took a copy of it, much to the wonder, 
interest, and amusement of our guides. It ran as follows : — 

Sacreb fo i§e ^Temorg of 2tfarg. 

She was a member for forty years, and many years a leader 
in Wesleyan Methodist Society. Devoted to her religious duties ; 
urbane and humble to the poor and all mankind ; affectionate 
and indulgent to her husband, sisters, and relations. 

The view from the knoll outside was very picturesque, es- 
pecially over a little lagune under some tall cocoa-trees towards 
some lights in the distance. The fireflies flitted and flickered 
around, below, and above us ; the moon shone brightly on 



THE 'SUNBEAM' BY MOONLIGHT. 



the blue waters of the bay ; and altogether it was a scene 
of beauty and peace which I was sorry to leave. 

It was growing late, however ; so we strolled back to the 
landing-place, followed by the good wishes of all the old 
negresses in the place, who shrilly expressed a strong desire 
to see us again soon and for a longer period — particularly the 
children and Sir Eoger. We rowed off to the yacht, which 
looked as though she were carved in ivory and stood out in 
strong relief against the almost golden moonlit sky and sea. 
On the other side she was in deep shadow, and each taper 
mast and every slender line of rigging and cordage showed 
clear and sharp in contrast with the bright background. 

Directly we were on board the anchor was weighed, and 
we steamed slowly out of this tranquil bay, past the little 
lighthouse [not marked on the chart), and, with our gilt Ara- 
bian horse- shoe on the extremity of the bowsprit pointing 
N.E., towards San Domingo, we were, it might almost be 
said, Homeward Bound ! 





CHAPTER XIII. 

JAMAICA TO THE BAHAMAS. 

Thursday, November 15th. 

AT dawn we could see the high mountains of Hayti, the 
Franco-negroid portion of San Domingo, which it is 
just now altogether preferable to look upon from a distance ; 
for the inhabitants of that island have been fighting among 
themselves, firing on English vessels, and generally mis- 
behaving themselves, as they have done at frequently recur- 
ring periods, any time these eighty years past. The ' Fan- 
tome ' has recently returned to Port Eoyal from an expedition 
to Port-au-Prince ; and the ' Dido ' has just been ordered 
back there, much to the disgust of those on board. It appears 
that the rebels have fitted out an old Eoyal Mail steamer, 
which they bought some time ago, as a privateer, and that 
in this vessel they are now scouring the seas ; so that pro- 
bably the ' Fantome ' will have to go out again to watch her. 
Among other modes of amusing themselves, the rebels seem 



HA YTI REBELLION. 



to have been creating a great many Princes and Princesses, 
Dukes and Duchesses, and other peers and peeresses ; and 
as the members of the newly created aristocracy are already 
rather impecunious and have no work to do, we had at one 
time serious thoughts of getting a couple of the Princes or 
Marquises to pull our punkah for us. I am sure some of the 
poor misguided creatures, having seen the error of their ways, 
would gladly have accepted the position. 

The following account of the outrage committed by the 
insurgents on the British steamer 'Alps,' on September 20, 
appeared in the New York papers of October 1 5 : — 

Her Majesty's ship ' Dido ' will be sent to investigate the recent 
affair at Jeremie, Hayti, where the steamer ' Alps ' was fired upon by 
one of the forts, while embarking refugees in obedience to the orders 
of the British Consul. The ' Alps ' shows the marks of the shells 
which struck her. The captain of the steamer states that he heard 
that two lady refugees who were left behhid at Jeremie, where his 
vessel was shelled by the Haytian forts, were killed. The British 
vice-consul at Jeremie, who boarded the ' Alps ' in a boat flying 
the American flag, remarked that the English flag did not appear to 
be of much avail there. 

The British steamer ' Alps ' arrived in New York yesterday. 
She left Port-au-Prince on September 16, having been requested by 
the British Consul-General to call at Jacmel, in order to remove 
certain non-combatant refugees desiring to go to Kingston. While 
doing this, on September 20, at Jacmel, she was fired on by the 
Haytian troops. One heavy missile entered the saloon, and two 
fragments of others struck the ship. The insurgents held Jacmel 
at the time, the Haytian troops behig posted on a bill two miles 
distant, whence the shots were fired. After the first bolt crashed 
into the saloon, just as the refugees were coming on board from the 
boat, all being women and children, except one invalid Frenchman, 
the captain ordered the flag to be displayed half-mast-high as a 
signal of his not wishing to fight. A second shot, however, was 
fired. The captain then steamed seaward, the Haytians firing seven 
shots after the vessel, the fragments of two striking her. The firing 
was only stopped when the ship was beyond range. The refugees 
were landed at Kingston on October 4, when the matter was re- 
ported to the British officials. 



HAY 17. 287 

On the last occasion of her return from Port-au-Prince, 
the ' Dido ' brought back some negroes, who had been im- 
prisoned for alleged complicity with the rebels, but whose 
release had been claimed on the ground that they were British 
subjects, from Jamaica. Captain Vander-Meulen had great 
difficulty in obtaining then liberation, and ultimately had to 
march them down from the jail between two files of armed 
blue-jackets, to protect them from the mob. It was therefore 
somewhat discouraging to Mm. after all the trouble which he 
had taken, to see these men. as soon as they were landed at 
Kingston, take the first ship back to Hayti. in order to jom 
the rebels again. 

Hayti. the western portion of San Domingo — the ' cradle 
of the New World/ wMch is, next to Cuba, the second largest 
and one of the most fertile of the Greater Antilles— seems to 
be disliked by all who visit it. How can you be comfortable 
in a country where there is a town having so unpleasantly 
suggestive a name as ' Bombardopolis,* to say nothmg of a 
river called ' Massacre ' '? The Eastern portion, or the Dorui- 
nican Republic, comprises more than three-fifths of the whole 
island, and contams the capital. Santo Dommgo City. The 
western part of the island still retams its old Caribbean 
name of Hayti. though its capital, originally called Cul-de-Sac, 
is now known as Port-au-Prince, having been so named in 
honour of a French frigate. ' Le Prince,' that took refuge there. 
and the commander of which discovered what a splendid 
harbour the town possessed. Though we were not very far 
off Jacmel, the large port where the mail steamers stop, we 
did not succeed m clearly niakmg out Alto Yella. a very high 
and conspicuous island peak, about sixteen miles from Beata 
Pomt, the southernmost pomt of the island. It is of curious 
shape, like a ship under full sail, and is, I believe, very white 
m colour. There are several small islands near, which I dare 
say might be worth a visit if one had time to spare, specially 



288 CUBA. 

the low flat' island Samona, on which a fleet of twenty-one 
Spanish treasure galleons was lost in 1 502 ; Bovadella and 
one of the most celebrated native Caiques, Guarionex, being 
on board one of the vessels. I have heard that skeletons, 
old Spanish doubloons, and wreckage are still found among 
the coral reefs and sand on the shores of the island. 

By noon we were not far off Santiago de Cuba, on the 
south-east coast of the island of Cuba, and saw a steamer 
coming out of that port. How much I should like to have 
paid ' the happy Isle ' a visit likewise ! There is a fine point 
some miles to the westward of the town, Monte Tarquino, 
more than 8000 feet in height. We coasted under the high 
land of Cuba all day, tacking across to Los Altares in the 
afternoon. These are most curious flat-topped rocks, closely 
resembling altars J which would form a remarkable landmark 
anywhere, but which are specially prominent among the high- 
pointed, uncultivated mountains of the island. We encoun- 
tered some heavy rain-squalls, the effect of which was very 
fine, as they went driving past wildly one after another over 
the sea and among the crags. How I wished we had had 
time to cruise round the western instead of the eastern end 
of the island, so as just to have peeped into Havana ! 

The night was even more than usually superb ; and as we 
were wafted gently along — rather more gently, indeed, than we 
had hoped ; for the sailing directions had led us to expect a fresh 
strong wind — by the land-breeze, bearing spicy odours from 
the shore, nothing could have been more delicious than the 
easy dreamy motion through the soft evening air.- With all 
her light canvas set and every stitch drawing, no vessel afloat 
could have looked more lovely than did the yacht this night. 

Friday, November 16th. — At 3.30 a.m. we were informed by 

1 Compare Virgil's JEncid : — 

Those hidden rocks th' Ausonian sai'ors knew : 
They called them Altars when they role in view, 
And showed their spacious backs above the flood. 



MOONLIGHT EFFECTS. 



Kindred, the mate, that the land-breeze, on which we had 
relied so much, had quite died away, and that, it being now 
absolutely calm, he feared we might drift ashore. Orders 
were at once given for steam to be got up, and, while this was 




being done, I stayed on deck for more than an hour, fascinated 
by the strange beauty of the scene. Though we were be- 
calmed, the current that was drifting us along towards the 
shore just kept the sails from flapping ; and such lights and 
shadows as were created by the radiance of moon and stars 
as it fell upon them were marvellously striking in their 
contrasts. The white canvas really looked as if it were a 
tissue of silver or of gold, attached to masts of ebony or 
ivory, according to the side from which they were viewed ; 
and the decks presented a, similar appearance. This de- 
scription may appear exaggerated ; but its truth will, I am 
sure, be confirmed by any one who has ever been fortunate 
enough to pass such a night as this in the tropics on the 
deck of a sailing : vessel of any kind, with every stitch of 
canvas set to catch the faintest air. And when that ship, 
like ours, is exquisitely modelled, her hull of snowy white 

M M 



290 CUBA. 

slightly relieved with gold, her taper spars tall enough to 
give full effect to the graceful curves of her swelling canvas, 
she is, indeed, a vision of beauty, as she seems to float 
gently on the surface, rather than to cleave her way through, 
the water. 

By six o'clock we were steaming to the eastward along the 
south-east coast of Cuba, and sails were being 'rapidly furled. 
By noon we were off Cape Maysi, on which is a solid-looking 
but not very picturesque lighthouse. There was a consider- 
able roll and hubble-bubble of the tides as we rounded 
the point — a regular seething witches' -cauldron, amounting 
almost to a whirlpool in some places ; and we were glad on 
every account when we were well through the watery turmoil 
and were able to lower the funnel and set sail along the 
north-east coast of Cuba. Except a dim haze in the distance, 




MAYSI POINT AND LIGHTHOUSE 



we saw nothing of the islands of Great or Little Inagua, the 
most southerly of the Bahama group. The capital of the 
larger island is Mathew-Town ; the principal export, salt. I 
am told that there is a pretty prairie in the centre of Great 
Inagua, as fair a spot as any in the Bahamas, and that there 
is some good shooting to be had there. People even talk of 
wild horses and wild cattle ; but those animals are rather 
things of the past, and the traveller must content himself 
with smaller game. The Turks and Caicos Islands, which 
lie a little beyond, were formerly considered part of the 
Bahama group ; but in 1 848 they were annexed to Jamaica, 



AMBERGRIS, 291 



and their affairs are now administered by a commissioner, 
a judge, and a certain number of other officials appointed 
by the Government of that island. Turks Islands derive 
their name from a beautiful scarlet cactus, in shape like a 
fez or tarbouch, which covered the islands in profusion 
when they were first discovered. Many whales used to be 
found here ; and some of the cays are still called ' ambergris- 
cays,' from the large quantity of that precious but very nasty- 
looking and horrid- smelling substance that used to be 
deposited upon them. Ambergris is something like coke, or 
perhaps more like black amber, in appearance, and is equally 
light. A small quantity is worth 25Z. ; the usual price 
being about a guinea an ounce. It has been found in 
masses varying between 30 and 225 ounces. The product 
is the result of some internal disease from which the whale 
occasionally suffers — a sort of ulcer or cancer, in fact, which 
is formed in the stomach of the leviathan of the deep 
when the climate disagrees with him, and which ailment a 
change of air and water is supposed always to cure. It is 
not a very agreeable idea to entertain, that a substance of 
such unpleasant provenance should be the foundation of almost 
all the scents which we use. Anciently ambergris was much 
used for spicing wines. Like most of the islands forming 
part of the same group, the principal exports of Turks and 
Caicos Islands are fruit, sponges, coral, and salt, the value 
of these products amounting to from 20,oooZ. to 30,000^. a 
year. , 

About half-past three in the afternoon we made the 
Yunque (or Anvil) de Baracoa, in Cuba, another curious flat- 
topped rock, or rather mountain, 1,824 f' ee t high, which 
closely resembles the much higher peak in Juan Fernandez, 
in the South Pacific, and is a peculiar object and valuable 
landmark from a long distance. We stretched along the 
north-east shore of the island under sail all the afternoon ; — 



292 



POINT LUCRE CIA. 



and a most delightful sail it was, made all the more enjoyable 
by perfectly smooth water and a pleasant breeze, scented 
with the spicy odours of the shore. 

In the night we saw the splendid red revolving light 
on Point Lucrecia. From the top of the deck-house the effect 




YUUQUE DE BARACOA 



was really very fine, and Tom said that, from the mast- 
head, the appearance of the revolving light was superb. It 
is a great, comfort to see a good lighthouse anywhere ; but 
it was specially so in a narrow, dangerous, and to us totally 
new channel. 

Saturday, November \yth. — We were favoured with a 
splendid breeze all day. On deck the air was deliciously cool ; 
but below it was still intensely hot. The temperature in the 
saloon has varied very little of late, ranging from 85 to 90 , 
except on one day in Trinidad, when it rose to 92 °. I think 
that to-day, in order to set the mainsail, the funnel was 
lowered rather sooner than it ought to have been, the conse- 
quence being that all the heat of the engine-room was concen- 
trated below and diffused throughout the whole ship. 



RACING A BRIGANTINE. 



293 



About noon we passed the lighthouse of Maternillos. A 
Spanish brigantine, in full sail, with all her studding-sails set, 
looked very beautiful as we raced past her— rather to her 
astonishment, I think ; for she was a fast sailer ; and we had 
to do our best for nearly 
forty miles before 
caught her, being 
luckily aided by a 
favourable puff 
just at the 
right moment. 
Soon after this, 
when the usual 
midday sights 
were taken, 




we found 

that an 

unexpect - 

edly strong 

current had 

carried us a 

considerable 

distance to 

leeward ; which 

contretemps caused 

us some little 

anxiety ; especially 

as the winds soon afterwards became light and variable. In 

the afternoon we entered the old Bahama Channel. At sunset 



294 INTRICATE NAVIGATION. 



we were four, miles off Lobos Cay, another island belonging 
to the Bahama group, on which there is a fine lighthouse 
146 feet high, and a pilot-station. Tom had at one time 
thought of taking a pilot here and going across the coral reefs 
of the Great Bahama Bank, by a shallow and somewhat in- 
tricate passage, by way of Lark's Nest, Wolf Bock, and Dolly 
Cay, to the Tongue of the Ocean, and thence to Nassau. It 
appeared to be a very short cut ; but on studying the sailing 
directions we found that we should have to anchor at night 
and to proceed very cautiously in the day, on account of our 
comparatively deep draught of water. It seemed, therefore, 
scarcely worth while to undertake extra risk and anxiety for 
the sake of merely saving a considerable distance, without 
effecting any great economy of time ; and we therefore deter- 
mined - to go straight on through Santaren Channel and 
Florida Strait. I regretted the necessity for this decision; 
for I should have much liked to have steamed over the coral 
reefs, and to have had the opportunity of looking down into 
the depths below. 

After a further run of four hours, during which Tom 
and I suffered considerable anxiety owing to the intricacy 
of the navigation, we reached the light at Paredon Grande, 
on the north side of Cuba. Our troubles — which, as a 
matter of fact, nobody else on board had known anything 
about, all being fast asleep below — were now more or 
less over ; for a comparatively open sea lay before us ; 
though there were still quite enough coral-reefs #nd rocks 
about to necessitate a continuous, keen, and careful look- 
out, besides constant checking of courses, and the adoption 
of every possible precaution to ensure the safety of the 
vessel. 

Sunday, November iStli. — At dawn, about six miles to 
leeward, we could see the curious angular-shaped little island 
of Anguila, on the south-east extremity of the Cay Sal Bank. 



BOTTLED MESSAGES. 295 



Even Tom wished we had time to stop here, Where the 
clearest water and the most lovely corals in all the beautiful 
Bahamas are said to be found. Even the usually prosaic 
' sailing directions ' condescend to go into raptures on the 
subject. . Mr. Bicknell writes as follows : — -' At daybreak on 
March 3, 1883, I weighed from the anchorage at Cay Sal 
and proceeded about two miles within the southern edge of 
the Cay Sal Bank, in from four to seven fathoms ; water as 
smooth as glass, and so clear that the bottom was distinctly 
visible, as if only a slight green gauze intervened between 
the eye and the numerous objects on the rocks and sand 
below. Starfish, kingfish, turtle, and every description of 
animate and inanimate nature passed in a panorama beneath. 
In no part of the world have I seen water of this depth so 
perfectly transparent.' 

We steered all day along the edge of the great Bahama 
Bank, on which so many good ships and such vast piles of 
treasure have been lost. Morning and afternoon service were 
held in the saloon ; the wind being too strong to allow us to 
have service on deck, and the weather so rough that there 
were not many attendants. 

We were very busy throughout the evening in preparing 
two soda-water bottles, hermetically sealed, with little flags 
stuck on the top of them to attract attention, and surrounded 
by carefully prepared triangular rafts to enable them to float. 
Each bottle contained a small roll of paper, on which was 
neatly written the following inscription : — 

Yacht 'SUNBEAM,' R.Y.S. Sir THOXAS BRASSEY, K.C.B., M.P., Owner and Commander. 
Off Cape Florida, iNbveniber 18th, 1883. Lat. 25° 40' N. ; Long. 30° 10' W. 

ALL WELL ON BOARD. FORTY-TWO SOULS; ALL TOLD. 

Five Pounds Eewaed to any one sending this paper to Sir Thomas Brassey, 
Civil Lord of the Admiralty, Whitehall, London; ivith details of latitude 
mid longitude, and date of where picked up. 



296 



GUN CAY LIGHTHOUSE. 



We propose to throw the bottles over where the current 
of the Gulf Stream is at its strongest. It here runs from 
twenty to 120 miles a day: the rate at this time of the 
year varying from sixty 
to eighty ; its greatest 
strength being attained 
in September ; its least 
in May. 




Monday, November igth. — At 
3.30 a.m. I went on deck to see the 
Gun Cay lighthouse, another fine, revolving, red light, on a 
tower eighty feet above the sea, and visible fourteen miles 
off. Behind it is a favourite shelter for wreckers. From the 
top of the deck-house we could also see in the sky the gleam 
of the fixed light on Cape Florida, the southernmost point of 
North America. From the masthead the light itself could 
be discerned. The passage between the mainland and the 
Cay ' is not very wide --about fifty miles — and there are 
many rocks and shoals in the intervening space. Just before 

1 ' Cay,' from the Spanish cayo, a rock, an islet, a range or reef of 
rocks lying near the surface of the sea, has been Gallicised in the- ' Aux 
Cayes ' of Hayti, and Americanised in the ' Key West ' and ' Cedar Keys ' of 
Florida. 



ISAAC CAY, AND HEN AND CHICKENS. 297 



daybreak we passed a large tug- steamer, showing three red 
lights and a mast-head light, instead of the usual red and 
green side lamps, and the white mast-head steering-light; 
thus indicating that the vessel was engaged in laying a tele- 
graph-cable. 

About five o'clock, between Gun Cay and Great Isaac Cay, 
we threw overboard the first of our bottles ; and, an hour 
later, the second ; wishing them both God-speed, with earnest 
hopes that they may be favoured with a prosperous voyage, 
and, falling into kind hands on some distant shore, may 
ultimately reach us again, ocean-stained and wave-worn. 
Perhaps they may even be the humble instruments of throw- 
ing a tiny additional ray of light on the mysterious course of 
this most marvellous and beneficent Gulf Stream. I shall 
look forward anxiously to hearing of our ' messages from the 
sea ' ones more ; and only hope that they may not be pre- 
maturely fished up by some passing ship. In any case, I feel 
that we can have done no harm in ' casting our bread upon 
the waters,' hoping to find it again after many days. If we 
ever do reap any harvest from our little experiment, it will 
be a day to be marked with a white stone. 

An hour later we were off the great Isaac Cay lighthouse, 
and the Hen and Chickens, where a pilot — or perhaps I may 
say a person calling himself a pilot — came alongside and 
offered his services, which Tom (who by this time was pretty 
nearly worn out) was only too glad to accept. His name 
was Kelly, and he came, as we afterwards found, from 
Bimini Island, a spot which affords a safe harbour for 
wreckers. He brought on board some beautiful shells, and 
some lovely plumes of sea-feathers, a species of gorgonia 
which had the. appearance of ten or a dozen ostrich feathers, 
from three to five feet long, growing in a group. Tom 
described his interview with the pilot, at which I was not 
present, as follows :— 

N N 



EXPENSIVE PILOTAGE. 



' As we were rounding Great Isaac, a small pilot-boat was 
observed, endeavouring to cut us off. The engines were 
stopped, and in a few minutes a stalwart negro stept on 
board, equally ready to plunder us, if he could get us into 
his power, or to pilot us to any port in the Bahamas. The 
bargain for the pilotage to Nassau was amusing and cha- 
racteristic of the Bahama 
wreckers. Kelly — for so 




GREAT ISAAC LIGHT AND HES' AND CHICKENS 



the negro was named— commenced with a 
demand for 20?. ; I replied with an offer 
of 5L After a prolonged altercation, we agreed for 87. 10-s. ; 
and immediately the bargain was concluded Kelly called 
out to the men in his boat, with whom a certain percentage 
of his earnings was to be shared, ' ' I am going to Nassau 
for 7Z." I at once pulled him up with the observation 
that as his men had received the announcement he had 
made without any expression of surprise, it was evident 
that the sum he had just named to them was reasonable 
and usual, . and that I positively refused to give more than yl. 
This led to a grotesque appeal on the grounds of Christian 



WRECKERS. 299. 



charity, his own poverty, and the extreme difficulty of the 
navigation he was undertaking. Eventually we agreed for 
yl., with an advance to SI. if the harbour-master at Nassau 
recommended it. On leaving me, after our arrival at Nassau, 
Kelly thought it a sufficient apology for his attempted ex- 
tortion to say that if he had known he was dealing with a 
gentleman he would never have made such a demand. He 
did not conceal that he would have thought anybody else fair 
game.' 

The modern West Indian ' wrecker ' may be considered as 
a dim survival of the pirates and buccaneers of the past ; just 
as an English sea-side lodging-house keeper is a survival of 
Cacus, and an extortionate London cabman a survival of Dick 
Turpin. ' These wreckers are equally prepared to pilot or to 
wreck a vessel, as suits their purpose best. In the " good 
old days," if the fishermen of the Bahamas saved life, they 
lost all claim for salvage on the vessel from which the rescue 
had been effected. Consequently it was by no means to their 
interest that any human being should be found alive upon a 
stranded ship. What this meant is obvious. The neighbour- 
ing coasts are desolate; the fishermen were both rapacious 
and lawless ; and, as a matter of fact, the number of ship- 
wrecked men brought to Nassau, in proportion to the cargoes 
recovered, was exceedingly small. This state of things, 
however, is now happily obsolete ; and if local knowledge 
and skill can avail the perplexed skipper in the time of 
difficulty he will find both an^ong the long-shore denizens of 
the Bahamas. Formerly everything saved from a wreck was 
sold by auction at Nassau; now all goods not of a perish- 
able nature, and undamaged, are reshipped to the port of 
destination. Collusion between ship -masters and pilots was 
also frequent ; but increased vigilance on the part of the 
insurance companies has considerably interfered with the ne- 
farious business of wrecking : while the numerous lighthouses 



3 oo THE BITER BITTEN. 



erected by the Government have operated in the same 
direction.' 

Captain Basil Hall in his ' Fragments ' repeats a story 
current in these parts, of a wrecker who boarded a ' be- 
wildered ' ship, and got the captain to agree to the most 
extortionate terms as the price of rescue ; whereupon he ' kept 
his promise truly to the ear, but broke it to the hope ' by 
placing the vessel in a worse position than that which she had 
occupied in the first instance. The captain, in despair, con- 
sented to a further heavy payment, and the wrecker ultimately 
fulfilled his share of the bargain ; but no sooner were they 
once more in deep water than the indignant victim of the 
extortion turned upon the treacherous pilot and demanded the 
return of his money. ' Now, master rascallion of a wrecker,' 
he cried, ' tit-for-tat is fair play all the world over ; and, unless 
you hand me back again my thousand dollars, I'll cut the 
tow-rope of your thievish-looking boat, and -then, instead of 
returning evil for evil, as I ought by rights to do, I'll be more 
of a Christian and do you a very good service by carrying you 
away from one of the most infamous places in the world to 
the finest country imaginable — I mean America. And as you 
seem to have a certain touch of black blood in your veins, I 
may chance to get good interest for my loan of these thousand 
dollars by selling you as a slave in Charlestown negro market ! 
What say you, my gay Mudian ? ' • 

At 4.30 p.m. we stopped off Stirrup Cay in order to visit 
the lighthouse. The row ashore was somewhat long, for the 
yacht was obliged to lie far out on account of the shallow- 
ness of the water ; but it was very interesting, as we neared 
the shore, to look through the clear water on to the white 
coral and sand, many fathoms beneath us, and to see all 
the corals, seaweeds, sponges, zoophytes, gorgonias, and 
other specimens of marine life growing in their native luxuri- 
ance and beauty. Sea-urchins of huge size, shell-fish, star- 



STIRRUP CAY. 



301 



fish, and all sorts of unknown animals, crawled about at 
the bottom ; while above, fishes, large and small, of every 

conceivable form and hue, darted 
hither and thither. Just off 
the point on which the light- 
house is situated, a small 
schooner was fishing for 
sponges — a very simple process 
apparently. The ' spongers,' 
asfthey are called, know ap- 
proximately the whereabouts 
of what they seek ; and, letting 




STIRRUP CAY LIGHT 



their vessels drift, they soon discover by looking through 
their sponge-glasses the exact spot where the finest specimens 
are growing. These glasses may perhaps be best described 
as square buckets with a glass bottom to them, which, dipped 
just beneath the surface of the sea, enable those looking 
through them to avoid all the surface-lop and agitation, and 



3©2 THE LANDING-PLACE. 



to see the bottom of the sea (in clear water, of course) as 
distinctly as possible, thus enabling the diver to pick out all 
the best pieces of sponge. 

Close to the little landing-place of Stirrup Cay a fishing- 
boat lay at anchor, well filled with some of the most beautiful 
and multicoloured fish imaginable, all alive, and swimming 
about as merrily as possible. There were fish here called 
turbot — not the least like our turbot, but of bright ultramarine 
and azure blue — bright scarlet fish, known locally as* ' red 
mullet,' although they are really, I believe, goat-fish, with a 
little tuft under their lower jaw ; delicate mauve and green 
and black and yellow fish ; and, in fact, so many other 
varieties that I cannot attempt to enumerate them. The 
captain and one hand had gone away in a small boat to 
catch a further supply. The man left in charge had had 
his foot badly crushed and his toes broken by a Dutch oven 
falling on them several days previously, and nothing had 
since been done to relieve his pain. The doctor therefore 
kindly stayed on board and did what he could to alleviate 
the poor fellow's sufferings. It was just one of those cases 
which make one reflect how very useful a little of the know- 
ledge imparted by 'the St. John Ambulance Association might 
at times be to the inhabitants of these scattered islands in 
general, and how valuable it would have been to this poor 
man in particular. 

I had been for some time past out of health, and was so 
pulled dow^ by my few days' illness that I could not manage 
to walk from the boat to the lighthouse ; but Tom had a 
board rigged up for me to rest upon, and he and the sailors 
carried me up. The lighthouse keeper and his companion, 
who had met us at the landing-place, were delighted to 
welcome us (for they have few visitors to this lonely spot), 
and sent to collect the other inhabitants of the small settle- 
ment, who were all within call, to see ' the strangers.' We 



CONCH SHELLS. 



303 



had a long chat with Ap Eeeee — a Welshman who had 
served his apprenticeship in the North Sea fishing- smacks, 
and had been twenty-four years in the navy and light- 
house service— and Mrs. Ap Eeece, his cheery mulatto wife. 
They told us much that was interesting about their life 
and experiences on the various cays and lighthouses in 

which they had been employed at 
different times, besides a great deal 
about coral and sponge fishing and 




shell and pearl getting, of the results of 
which we saw such beautiful specimens in 
the Bahamas department of the Fisheries 
Exhibition, in London, in 1883. They gave me some fine 
' king,' ' queen,' and ' common ' conch shells : the latter being 
the particular variety in which the pink and many-coloured 
pearls are found. Some years ago the queen- conch (a shell 
with a delicate pink lining) was in great demand for export 
to different parts of Europe, especially to Italy, where cameos 
were cut from them. This particular shell has gone quite 
out of favour, and nothing but the king-conch — -which, 
though smaller, is far richer in its colouring of dark choco- 



304 A WELCOME. 



late and reddish brown — is looked upon with favour as an 
article of commerce. The common conch has also a pretty 
pink lining, but is not so well marked as the queen, and 
grows sometimes to an enormous size. The specimens with 
which we are familiar are generally spoilt by having a great 
hole knocked out at the top with a hatchet, in order to 
extract the fish and the potential pearls within. The shell 
itself is useless, but the flesh is good to eat ; and embedded 
in it are found (instead of attached to the shell, as is the 
case with the oyster) the pearls which give the conch its 
value. 

I had taken some old newspapers and one or two copies of 
the ' Voyage of the Sunbeam ' on shore with me, thinking 
that they might interest the people at the lighthouse. The 
' Sunbeam ' book they seemed to be already familiar with ; 
for when we wrote our names in the visitors' book, and, 
recognising them,. also realised the fact that the ' Sunbeam' 
herself was in the offing, their delight knew no bounds. At 
the next house — that of the assistant lighthouse keeper, ,Pe 
Meric — -directly his son and daughter heard of our arrival 
and were told that the children were on the sea-shore picking 
up shells, the daughter seized her hat and flew off to see 
Muriel and Baby, whom she welcomed as old friends. It is 
a curious, and at the same time a gratifying feeling to 
find oneself and one's belongings so well known in- all 
parts of the world, through the simple writing of one little 
book which was never intended to be a published book 
at all, but was, originally, only a journal written for the 
information and amusement of my dear father and my 
most intimate friends. It often brings tears into my 
eyes to find how much has unexpectedly arisen from what 
appeared so slight a source. Poor Mrs. de Meric was too ill 
to move from the house, but I think everybody else accom- 
panied us to the shore, where we found our boat nearly 



NEARLY AGROUND. 305 



full of shells, fish, and other little curiosities. Among them 
was a fruit which we had never seen before, and which had 
been brought from another island. It is called ' grape-fruit,' 
and must not by any means be confounded with the sea- 
grape before alluded to. It looks and tastes much like a 
shaddock, though it is smaller in size than that fruit. The 
fact of its being called grape-fruit is curious and confusing, 
for it does not bear the slightest resemblance to a grape, nor 
does the tree on which it grows look like a vine. As a matter 
of fact, it is of the same tribe as the orange (Citrus), and 
it has the colour of a citron and a pleasant flavour. 

Thus laden with good things, and followed by many kind 
wishes and earnest hopes that we should come again, our 
departure from Stirrup Cay was really quite touching. The 
people on shore followed us to the farthest point from which 
they could see us, waving their handkerchiefs and shouting 
farewell. We had a stiff pull- to windward in order to reach 
the yacht. When we were still some distance from it, Kelly, 
the pilot, who was with us, suddenly cried out in an excited 
manner, ' Oh ! she is going ashore fast ! She will be on 
the reef directly ! ' We tried to attract the attention of 
those on board, but for a time in vain. At last, by dint 
of much waving of hats and of my shawl, and of great 
shouting, we succeeded in making those on board conscious of 
their danger ; whereupon the engines were backed astern, 
just in time to prevent the good ship going hard and fast 
aground. There were no very salient points on the low shore 
to notice ; and the movement of the yacht could only have 
been detected by the very closest observation on the part of 
those in charge. The current therefore had been slowly 
but steadily carrying the vessel on to one of these justly 
dreaded reefs. 

After this scare I hoped that we were to have a quiet 
night ; but such was not the case. A little before midnight, 

o 



3°6 



SHALLOW WATER. 



certain sounds which I heard caused me to entertain serious 
misgivings; and on going on deck I found that the so-called 
' pilot ' (who could not read anything from a chart;, apparently 
wishing to make sure of his position, and to have a good look 
at the reef just outside the harbour-light at Nassau, before 
going in, had approached the shore so closely that there 
was barely a foot of water under her stern. 





CHAPTEE XIV. 

THE BAHAMAS. 



Tuesday, November 20th. 

T 1.30 a.m. we at last dropped 
our anchor, in the little 
harbour of Nassau. I only hope 
it may be possible for us to 
remain here in peace for a short 
time ; but there is only fifteen feet of water in the harbour, 
and we draw thirteen feet. Even at this hour we could see 
evidences of the damage that had been done by the disastrous 
hurricane in September last, in the shape of roofs torn off, 
huts thrown down, and wrecks ashore and afloat, in every 
direction. 



3o8 THE 'SPONGER: 



At six I- was finally aroused by the intelligence that the 
harbour-master was on board ; and as Tom was, I am happy 
to say, sound asleep — quite worn out after his incessant watch- 
fulness, ceaseless vigils, continually recurring alarms and 
constant want of sleep —I ' interviewed ' the new arrival and 
found him full of information. He promised to engage us- 
a good man and a good boat, with sponge-glasses and all 
complete, so that we might go and see the coral-reef and 
garden beneath the sea, which we have read and talked so 
much about lately. With reference to Kelly, our pilot, he 
remarked that he was a good ' wrecker,' and added that he 
would send us a good 'sponger,' not very inviting names for 
our first acquaintances in the Bahamas. 

Soon the ' sponger ' himself appeared, Sampson Stamp by- 
name, in his trim little cutter-yacht ' Triton,' twenty-six feet 
in length, six feet in beam, carrying 7,000 lbs. on her keel,. 
and the best sailer in the bay, as he informed us. He him- 
self was a tall good-looking negro, black as a coal, about six 
feet high, jauntily dressed in yachting costume, and evidently 
entertaining a very good opinion of himself. His crew, two* 
bright-eyed brown mulatto boys, were ragged but looked, 
capable. 

The harbour-master had given us elaborate instructions 
for anchoring and mooring the ' Sunbeam,' which directions 
were most faithfully carried out, so as to save us the trouble 
of moving from the unsuitable spot which our ' wrecker ' had 
selected for us, and at the same time to keep us off the 
ground. It was all of no avail, however, for when the tide 
turned, and the wind, which was pretty fresh, caught the 
yacht's bow, we felt a sudden bump, something, like a 
miniature earthquake, and she went hard and fast aground. 
A tremendous amount of tugging and pulling and hauling 
and shouting — perhaps as much of the latter as of airything 
else — was required in order to get her off again; and wa 







% Bahama 



% 



Bank 



•• *<V .d* ro<^ San Salvador or Wailing 1^ 

»6 """ -9 ~ ILanMJLof Cohoribus 0ob.l4§°.) 









Ban*? 

L ■'■■■ 

Fawrv 







78 LougitucU West 76 from Greenwich 74 



-Ji !1 



A'eiv York: Henry Holt & Co. 



EFFECTS OF A HURRICANE. 309 



waited to see this operation successfully completed before 
starting in our boat up the bay, aided by a strong fair tide 
but opposed by a contrary wind. At every tack we saw fresh 
traces of the effect of the hurricane, both on land and sea, in 
the shape of cottages blown quite level with the ground, 
trees by the hundred uprooted from the soil — bringing every- 
thing with them and leaving the white coral bed, on which 
they had stood, exposed — and ships dismasted or totally 
wrecked on the shore. We passed the bishop's smart little 
cutter-yacht, called the ' Message of Peace,' lying at anchor, 
close to a pretty village, with a nice and very English-looking 
church spire peeping through the trees. The yacht, in which 
the bishop goes on his missions of mercy round the coast, 
is of thirty tons burthen, and draws five-and-a-half feet of 
water. At the time of the hurricane only the captain was 
on board ; and he ran her ashore on the soft sand among 
the cocoa-nut palms, whence she was carried about a hun- 
dred yards farther up into the grove, eventually getting off 
again without having sustained much damage. The ' General 
"Whitfield ' on the contrary, which tried to ride out the gale, 
was dismasted, lost her deck, and very nearly went to the 
bottom altogether. Not a single vessel rode out the hurri- 
cane, except the 'Sparrow Hawk' and 'Eichmond,' both 
belonging to the British Government : the reason of their 
escape being that they had previously made all their pre- 
parations for a possible hurricane, and had five anchors out, 
arranged in a sort of star fashion. In all human probability, 
if the other ships had taken the same precautions, they also 
might have survived the storm, and many valuable lives 
might have been saved. Mr. Thompson's large and some- 
what r)retentious-looking house, known as ' Thompson's 
Folly ' which ' we next passed, though apparently much ex- 
posed, has escaped three attacks of these terrible hurricanes, 
owing no doubt to the fact that it is so light and airy that 



;io 



MONTAGUE FORT. 



the wind blows clean through it without meeting with any 
resistance. Close by, on the other side of the harbour, was a- 
much more substantial-looking edifice, the roof of which had 
been completely taken off, and was lying beside it. This 
house originally formed the residence of the builder of what 
was described to us as a ' large dockyard and marine 
railway,' though, at present at all events, it is only a greased 
slip, with iron rails, by means of which small ships are 
hauled up to shore. On the other side of the narrow strait 
is Potter's Cay, a snug little spot, with many sponge-yards* 
where the process of cleaning and drying sponges is carried on. 
It is through this strait that many if not most of the sponge- 
boats go in search of their useful 
2jiB T^-rH cargo. A little beyond this point 
is Montague Fort, which now only 
| mounts four utterly useless guns. 




MONTAGUE FORT 



Formerly it was held by a succession of sea-robbers, notably 
by Black Beard, one of the celebrated Buccaneers, who charged 
a due of ninepence on every vessel that entered the narrow 
channel, and blew those out of the sea that refused to pay : 
at least, so ' Sampson Stamp ' said ; and I believe that, as a. 
matter of fact, the pirates did fire through the bows of one 



CORAL REEF. 311 



or two vessels which refused to comply with Black Beard's 
abrupt and imperious demands, sinking them at once. 

But now we are getting near to the coral reef, where the 
clear fresh water springs bubbling through the coral. At 
very low neap-tides it can be seen and tasted, just as it comes 
welling and sparkling up. The inhabitants take advantage of 
these tides to construct a primitive sort of filter and conduit 
pipe, composed of barrels, with the ends knocked out, placed 
one on the top of the other, and filled with sand, till they 
reach the surface of the sea at high water : the bottom one 
being half-embedded in the reef. This arrangement answers 
very well for a time, but every other year or two the whole 
process of construction has with considerable labour to be 
repeated. Still, most of the drinking water is obtained in the 
Bahamas in this way ; particularly in the small and outlying 
islands. On this same coral reef we had our first peep 
through the ' magic glasses,' as I think I may fairly call 
them ; and you cannot imagine the world of utterly unexpected 
wonders that were at once revealed to us. What a fairy scene 
it was ! How clearly we could see the lovely submarine 
garden ; and how short a distance it seemed to be beneath us ! 
How we longed to do what appeared to be perfectly easy — to 
step down into the crystal depths and walk about at our 
leisure in the realms of Aphrodite : to admire, if not to pluck, 
the many enchanting things growing in her fair pleasaunce. 
There were sponges of all kinds and shapes : great round 
masses of sheep's-wool and velvet sponges, of a yellowish 
brown colour, and bright scarlet glove-sponges branching up 
like huge hands. Their brilliant colour was derived from 
the sponge-making animal which still adhered to them ; for 
they were soon washed snow-white over the side of the boat. 
Then there were little black balls of reef-sponges, covered 
with the black bodies of their manufacturers, forming a sort 
of shiny coat, which made them look anything but suitable 



312 



SPONGES AND CORALS. 



for use as face-sponges. There were wire-sponges, bright 
and beautiful as any allamanda, the colour of which is 
also due to the animals by which they are constructed ; and 
grey sponges, sometimes called Venus's cups — in shape not 
unlike coral Neptune's cups. Very often the latter grow- 
together in a group on a coral base, and resemble a set of 
wine-glasses, on stems ; some very small, but ranging up- 
wards in size to the dimensions of a goblet large enough to 
contain the ' longest ' drink that ever was mixed by thirstiest 
of men, on the most broiling of daj*s, in the hottest of West 
Indian islands. These sponges were scattered among corals, 
or clung to rocks, with graceful gorgonias and seaweed grow- 
ing on them. The 
brain-coral (Diplo- 
ria), so called from 
its resemblance to 
the convolutions of 
the . human brain, 
is specially fine 
here. One specimen 
which I secured sur- 
passed in beauty of 
form, and delicacy 
of structure any- 
thing of the kind I 
had ever imagined. 
Having observed it 
through the sponge- 
glass, I jDointed it 
out to Buddy,the di- 
ver ; who promptly 
reduced his already 
very scanty garments to a minimum, seized a hatchet, jumped 
overboard, and sank easily to the bottom, holding on by one 




COLOURED FISH. 313 



toe to something or another to keep him down until he had 
detached the coral from its native rock. He could not, how- 
ever, succeed in bringing the coral to the surface : it was too 
heavy for him. A stirrup of rope was therefore made ; and 
with the assistance of the other diver — a Spaniard — my pre- 
cious treasure w T as placed in the boat. Besides the splendid 
brain -corals, there were others of every sort and description, 
resembling mushrooms, purple and yellow fans, stars and trees, 
and many other objects. Among them grew sponges, madre- 
pores, seaweeds of the most varied forms and delicate hues, 
and sea-anemones of every kind and colour ; while above the 
beautiful purple and yellow fan-corals — the latter of which I 
had never seen before — waved the plumes of the graceful pink 
and mauve sea-feathers, which, as seen through the trans- 
lucent waves, looked almost more like ferns than feathers. 
Each coral, it must be remembered, instead of being one of 
those dry bleached skeletons with which we are all familiar 
in collections, and which, beautiful in form as they often 
are, sadly want colour and life, had bright little feathered 
tentacles, stretched out from every aperture, waving back- 
wards and forwards in search of its tiny prey. The brightest 
coloured fish, looking like tropical birds and butterflies, shot 
about in every direction. I really did not know which to 
admire most among 'them. The humming-bird fish, all 
blazing in purple and gold— -as of old did the Assyrian cohorts 
— is supposed to surpass all others in beauty ; but there is a 
bright blue fish, like a brilliant Brazilian butterfly, which 
runs him very close ; as does also my old friend the pale 
mauve and green fish, which we first saw at Stirrup Cay. 
The black and orange Spanish angel-fish were especially 
gorgeous ; the little paler- yellow variety looked graceful and 
gay as canary-birds, as they flitted about in shoals ; while the 
more sober but equally handsome dark-coloured blue and 
.green fish, claimed a special share of admiration. I am not 

p p 



314 MARINE WONDERS. 

at all sure' that the velvet-fish, the skin of which really looked 
just like jet-black velvet of the richest pile, with three bright 
orange spots on each side of its face, was not one of the 
handsomest. Among the larger specimens were the black 
and white striped gropers, supposed to be the best fish for 
the table in the West Indies ; the striped blue and white 
pilot-fish, the presence of w T hich is almost always a sure sign 
that one or many sharks are not far off; and many others 
too numerous to mention : while quantities of shells, which 
I have not attempted to describe, were also plainly visible. 
If you can picture to yourself the most beautiful of corals, 
madrepores, echini, seaweeds, sea-anemones, sea-lilies, and 
other fascinating marine objects, growing and nourishing 
under the sea, with fish darting about among them, like the 
most gorgeous birds and butterflies conceivable, all in the 
clearest water, which does not impede the vision in the least, 
and resting on a bottom of the smoothest white coral sand ; 
if you still further imagine a magnificent blue sky overhead, 
and a bright sun shining out of it ; even then you will have 
but a very faint idea of the marvellous beauty of the wonders 
of the sea on a coral-bank in the Bahamas. I had longed 
for years to behold such a sight, and I found now that 
the spectacle not only equalled but far surpassed my most 
sanguine anticipations. 

And here were coral bowers, 

And grots of madrepores, 

And banks of sponge, as soft and fair to eye 

As mossy bed whereon the wood-nymphs lie, 

With languid limbs, in summer's sultry hours. 

Here, too, were living flowers. . . . 

Some writer has remarked that the spectator who is not 
greatly excited, exhilarated, and charmed by seeing the coral 
banks of the Bahamas, under favouring circumstances, must 
certainly be colour-blind — so to speak, ' dead in the eye ' — 



SPONGE-GLASSES. 



3*5 



one of whom Shakespeare would say, ' let no such man be 
trusted.' If the reverse of this dictum be equally true, cur 
little party of to-day ought to be regarded as most trust- 
worthy ; for we were all intensely interested and delighted — I 
may say completely fascinated — by the glorious scene. A 
droll little group we must have looked, sitting all in a row 




along the side of the boat, and peering through the glasses 
w T hich alone gave us admittance to the marvels of the magic 
world below. Without these aids to vision we could see com- 
paratively little, on account of the slight motion on the top 
of the water, which rendered everything indistinct and hazy; 
whereas, with the help of our tropical lorgnons, all was clear 
and vivid. 



316 DIVERS. 

Our occupation of gazing at the wonders of the deep was 
only interrupted when from time to time we paused for a 
moment to point out some specially attractive shell, or coral, 
or gorgonia, to Buddy or the Spaniard, who very rarely made 
a mistake, but generally jumped overboard at once and 
promptly secured the desired object, bringing it to the surface 
and putting it on board the boat with surprising celerity ; 
though I must add that as a rule our divers looked somewhat 
exhausted by their exertions. It was very curious to watch 
their movements, and to see how agile and dexterous they 
were in walking about and working beneath the water. It 
made one long to be able to do the same thing, and, picking 
and choosing exactly what was thought to be most interesting, 
to collect them with one's own hand instead of by proxy. 
The description on which I have ventured may perhaps be 
regarded as exaggerated : but it is not so. Without having in 
the least wavered in my admiration of my favourite Tahiti 
— which I believe I shall always consider the most delightful 
place in the world — I cannot but own that the coral-reefs of 
the Bahamas appear more beautiful than those of Oceania ; 
partly, I think, because they are seen to better advantage 
through the glasses, and partly because, in addition to the 
corals, the variety of sponges, gorgonias, echini, sea-weeds, 
and sea-flowers, is much greater. 

I was surprised at the ignorance of the divers — who, in 
many respects, are above the average as regards intelligence 
— as to objects which they must be in the habit of seeing 
every day, and about which it might reasonably be supposed 
that they would have known a good deal. A large Nereid 
worm, about six or seven inches long, crawled out of one of 
the sponges or corals, directly it was taken out of the water 
on to my hand. 'Oh, Missy!' cried Sampson; ' you m are 
lucky. I not often see the animal that makes the coral 
himself." I fear that all the explanation which I attempted 



FORMATION OF CORAL-REEFS. 317 

to give him as to the growth of corals (derived principally 
from Dana's work, with which I have been refreshing my 
memory lately) was quite lost upon him. I told him how the 
coral- animal resembles in form the common China or German 
aster, that grows in our gardens at home, and here also ; 
and how it has the same central disc, the same coloured 
petals or tentacula. Each little creature is provided with a 
strong tube, which contains his stomach and mouth, and fits 
into the orifice which he inhabits. Unable to move from 
his position, he goes on steadily forming a sort of calcareous 
deposit, and at his death leaves his own skeleton to add to 
the beautiful and imperishable mausoleum which his ancestors 
have been raising for so many thousands of years. ' The mills 
of the gods grind slowly ' it has been said ; and thus also do 
the coral-insects work. They increase very much like vege- 
tables, or like other kinds of zoophytes ; commencing in the 
form of little buds and gradually attaining maturity, when 
they either take the place of their parents, or drop off and 
find an independent home. They cannot exist in a tempera- 
ture of less than 68° ; and by a merciful provision of Provi- 
dence the water in which they work must be full of air. 
Their strongest, best, and highest work is consequently 
always on the windward side of an island, where the waves 
break with the greatest force aiid where the water in this way 
becomes aerated. An opening is thus left towards the lee- 
ward side, which affords access for small boats to the pro- 
tection of the lagoon. Dana divides coral-reefs into three 
classes. The first is what are known as ' fringing-reef corals,' 
generally of small area, and existing in very shallow water; 
the next are ' barrier-reef corals,' often of very large extent — 
like the great barrier-reef that runs for twelve hundred miles 
along the north east coast of Australia, at a distance of from 
ten to a hundred miles from the shore, and with a depth of 
water never less than sixty and often more than six hundred 



318 ODORIFEROUS TREASURE-TROVE. 



feet on either side of it. The third variety usually surrounds 
lagoons of ocean water. Naturally circular in form, it almost 
without exception has an opening, as I have before said, 
on the leeward side. These reefs, called Atolls, are seen in 
special beauty in the South Pacific Ocean. Sampson would 
not believe this story at all. ' No, Missus, no ! ' he said, ' no 
one animal in each hole, like flower, no leave skeleton behind. 
No, Sampson cannot believe that ! yah, yah, yah, very sorry, 
Missus ; never heard such a thing as that ! ' 

I am bound to confess that there was one little drawback 
to our full enjoyment of this delightful expedition; and that 
was the smell (not to use a stronger expression) emitted by the 
interesting objects brought up from the bottom of the deep 
blue sea, and from various cool grots below, when suddenly 
exposed to the heat of an almost tropical sun. The beat was 
quite full of malodorous treasure -trove ; and the effect on our 
, olfactoiy nerves was not agreeable ; besides, it was now 
getting late, and we had asked Captain Rice, commanding 
the ' Sparrow Hawk,' and Mr. Tipping, a friend of Major 
Woodgate, in the ist West Indian Regiment, to lunch with us 
at the Victoria Hotel, of which we had seen such glowing 
pictures, and read such wonderful accounts, as being the best 
hotel in the West Indies. Reluctantly, therefore, I gave the 
order to weigh the little anchor ; and soon we were scudding 
away before the fresh fair breeze, down the harbour, a great 
deal faster than we had come up. The colours of the sea 
on the reef were very fine ; varying from palest bright aqua- 
marine or emerald green, to sapphire and cobalt blue; while 
above, the surf broke high on the snowy-white fringing-reef. 
Les extremes se tovehent is a very old adage ; but in no case, 
to my mind, does the saying apply more forcibly than with 
reference to the apparent resemblance of tropical seas and 
coral-reefs to glaciers and snows. This resemblance struck me 
first when we went, almost direct from the Straits of Magellan 






THE GOVERNOR AND LADY LEE. 319 



— where are perhaps the most beautiful green and blue glaciers 
in the world — to the islands of the South Pacific. My first 
impression on beholding a coral-island was that it was like a 
glacier, laid on its side ; the bright colours that attract the 
eye being almost exactly similar in every particular. Further 
experience has confirmed me in my conviction of this curious 
similitude ; which was specially marked to-day, as we sped 
our swift course back to the ' Sunbeam.' 

On our arrival on board the yacht, it was rather amusing, 
when we remembered all we had heard in praise of the Hotel 
Victoria, to be told that, finding that there was nothing to 
be had to eat on shore, it had been necessary to arrange 
for us to lunch on board. The walls of the establishment 
certainly exist, and doubtless contain some furniture ; but 
nothing else, I believe. The hotel was to have been opened 
to-day ; but the steamer which should have arrived yesterday, 
and which was to have brought out not only the manager, 
the whole staff of cooks, waiters, and the brass band, b v 
the most important item of all — the food itself — had not yet 
appeared. 

The Governor had been good enough to send a message 
in the morning to offer us his carriage, and to ask us all to 
dine. It was Lady Lee's reception day ; and directly after 
lunch we all w T ent ashore — Tom, the children, and I, to pay 
our respects to their excellencies and to see something of 
this nice-looking town of Nassau ; the rest of the party to 
start in another direction, under charge of Mr. Tipping, to 
buy curiosities, and to see the lakes of Killarney, a beautiful 
spot in the interior of the island, which was afterwards de- 
scribed to me as follows : — 

' We drove through the town, which has nice wide streets 
shaded with cork and almond trees, on our way to the 
lakes ; and passing the barracks and officers' quarters, and 
through the suburbs, where we were amused to see both 



320 



LAKES CUNNINGHAM AND KILLARNEY. 



grown-up men and small children flying kites, we entered a 
sandy road running parallel with the beach, and bordered 
with sea-grapes, wild allamandas, and almond trees. Further 
on we arrived at a scrubby patch of palmetto ferns and pine 




KILLARNEY LAKE 



trees, of which a large number had been overthrown by the 
hurricane, while the survivors looked much the worse for 
wear. At this point began Lake Cunningham, which we 
skirted for some distance. Then, leaving our carriages, we 
scrambled up the hill on our left, over very rough ground, 
composed of coral-rock and loose boulders, to the highest 

point of the crest, 
whence there was 
a fine view of the 
two lakes, Cun- 
ningham and Kil- 
larney, bordered 
by a belt of low 
pine woods, and 
containing a few small wooded islands, frequented by sports- 
men in winter for the sake of the wild-fowl shooting, which 




GOVERNMENT HOUSE, NASSAU. 321 



is very plentiful. Beyond the lakes the sea was breaking in 
white lines of foam on the numerous coral reefs which sur- 
round Nassau. It was an extensive, and would doubtless 
have been a charming view in a better light, but the shades of 
evening were rapidly falling. We were interested to see what 
pains had been taken to fill every tiny crevice in the hard 
coral-rock with sugar-cane, maize, or pumpkins ; and in spite 
of the unpromising condition of the soil they seemed to be 
doing very well. We found some very pretty stephanotis and 
a curious little dwarf euphorbia, almost like an arundo, full 
of milky juice. The descent was more tedious than the ascent 
had been, for the coral ledges were extremely slippery, and 
the boulders were ready to roll down with us at the slightest 
touch ; while, to add to our embarrassment, we had been 
specially warned to be on our guard against sundry deep 
holes, down which, had we disappeared, it would have been 
for good and all in this world. However, we reached the 
bottom safely, and started off in our buggies through the fast- 
fading twilight ; and as our drivers were not unwilling to 
show us what Bahama ponies could do, we reached Nassau in 
time to put in an appearance at the Governor's dinner-party 
with reasonable punctuality.' « 

We, meantime, went up to Government House, where we 
were most kindly received by Sir Charles and Lady Lees, and 
were introduced to many of the leading colonists. W T e made 
our visit as short as possible, pleasant as it was ; for we were 
anxious to get on to see the guano-caves some distance from 
Nassau. The Governor insisted on lending us his carriage, 
driven by an intelligent negro coachman, who, in excellent 
English, pointed out to us the various objects of interest 
which we passed. Government House itself, at the top of 
a long street leading from the quay, is approached by a very 
long flight of steps, in front of which is a statue of Columbus 
in curious costume. The interior of the house seems to be 



322 



NASSAU. 



fairly comfortable, although it is said that since the American 
Civil AVar, which almost ruined these islands by the reckless 
speculation which it induced, there has never been enough 

money to spare in the 
Bahamas to make it possi- 
ble to furnish the rooms of 
Government House pro- 
perly. Nassau was the 




head quarters 
of the blockade- 
runners and of 
the smugglers 
(for Confederate 
purposes) of qui- 
nine and opium 
from the north- government house 

ern to the south- 
ern ports ; and ' rebel mails ' used to be periodically made up 
by ' Secesh ' sympathisers in New York, for transmission via 
Nassau to the South. Fabulous fortunes were made and lost ; 
and many amusing stories are still told of the events of that 
period of havoc and convulsion. 

But I must proceed with the description of our drive, 
which led us through the nice clean streets of Nassau, 
whence we caught occasional glimpses, through the half or 
wholly open doors of the houses, of deliciously home-like 
interiors. The gardens were full of bright flowers, similar 
to those which we had seen in the islands we have so recently 
visited. We saw also a wild fig-tree, a species of banyan, 



VEGETATION OF THE BAHAMAS. 323 



which in forty years had attained a great size, its many 
large branches towering up into the air with a lateral spread 
of about eighty feet, full of small ripe figs about the size 
of one's little finger. Of palms we noticed several kinds, 
including the cocoa-nut, the cabbage, the palmetto, and a few 
African varieties ; while the more valuable timber-trees com- 
prised pitch-pines, mahogany, olive, cassaway, mastic, and 
lignum vitae. Among the fruits of the Bahamas the sapo- 
dilla is abundant and cheap. It is oval in shape, with yellow 
pulp, but the taste for it has to be acquired — and is not 
very easy of acquisition. Shaddocks, often two feet in cir- 
cumference, grape-fruit nearly as large, oranges, limes, and 
lemons are plentiful, and, like the pine, which is largely 
cultivated, are of first-rate quality. The islands also pro- 
duce custard-apples, bread-fruit, rose-apples, figs, avocado 
pears, pomegranates, and mulberries. Among the flowers 
may be mentioned the mignonette-tree, acacias, Barbadoes 
pride, flamboyant (a mass of splendid crimson and orange 
flowers), the coral tree — the flower of which exactly resembles 
a spray of real coral — myrtles, jasmines, tuberoses, begonias, 
passifiorae, oleanders, allamandas, stephanotis, aloes, and 
many varieties of roses. It must be understood that these 
beautiful trees, vegetables, and plants are not as a rule 
visible to the casual observer, but grow in all sorts of little 
sequestered holes and corners, wherever there is enough of the 
thin soil to support them. 

The general impression produced by the aspect of the 
country which we drove through this afternoon, along the 
edge of the sea-shore, was that the vegetation consisted of 
grape-vines and shrubs, relieved by occasional big trees, 
some of which, were lying on their sides, having been uprooted 
by the hurricane. We passed one house, looking very de- 
serted and desolate, which our driver told us had formerly 
.been a favourite place of resort for tea-parties, but which has 



3 2 4 



KITE-FL YING. 



now fallen into disuse, and consequent decay. On one of the 
obelisk-like old gate-posts stood a small urchin flying a kite ; 




ex- 

statu- \ 
old and \ 
seems to fly 
We passed 
houses, appa 



and on the very tumble-to-pieces iron 

railings beside him was a still smaller 

urchin, trying to imitate his 

ample : the two forming highly 

\ esque objects. Everybody, 

young, large and small, 

kites in these islands. 

several country- 

rently unin- 



habited and evi- 

ricane-swept ; and 

came to a lake full of 

beautiful water- 
lilies, but surrounded 
by such a morass that 
it was impossible to 
reach the flowers. 




CAVERNS. 325 

The road everywhere was much spoilt, and rendered very heavy 
"by the quantity of sea-sand that had been blown over it ; but 
our well-bred little horses went gaily on at a tremendous pace. 
We passed a large pine-apple plantation ; and then, at the 
edge of a rather dense wood, our driver suddenly drew up 
and said, ' These are the caves.' We looked round about us, 
"but could see nothing, except the sea on one side, and an 
apparently dense forest on the other. Leaving his horses 
to rest and browse, our charioteer showed us a little woodland 
})ath which soon led us to the entrance to the caves. Over 
one of them was cut in the rock, 'Prince Alfred, 1861.' 
Prom the top dropped clear cool water, and the entrance 
ivas draped with beautiful creepers and ferns. Without 
magnesium- wire and plenty of help, it would have been 
impossible to penetrate into the larger caves. In some of 
them deposits of guano made by bats and birds have been 
discovered. This valuable manure is scarcely used at all in 
the Bahamas ; but the exports of it amount in value to some 
4,oooL a year. Caverns, especially in strange and solitary 
places, have always a weird sort of fascination for me ; and I 
could not help, in imagination, peopling the dark recesses of 
these savage antres (to the limits of which it is said thai no 
one has yet penetrated) with buccaneers and pirates ; and, in 
iny mind's eye, could see all manner of rough picturesque 
figures engaged in lawless occupations, or counting up their 
ill-gotten doubloons and other spoils. The coachman gave us 
some of the long tendrils of the love-vine rolled up into 
coils, which he assured us would live and grow for years, if 
hung on a nail indoors. I fear this rule only applies to the 
tropics, and that the love-vine will not approve of the ' Eoar- 
ing Forties,' and the English Channel in midwinter, anymore 
than I shall. The tendrils extend from tree to tree, and 
liang down like long light greenish-brown tresses of hair, 
such as might half envelop a mermaid, rising from her cool 



326 PINE-APPLES. 

coral-grot in the deep blue sea, to lure % the unfortunate 
mariner to an untimely grave. 

The evening light had so far faded that we were unable 
to see the pine- apples very well. It is, moreover, at present 
not the right season of the year for them. They have 
nearly all been gathered ; and only a few stray specimens 
are left behind. Kemarkably good those few stray ones are, 
nevertheless. English hot-house pines must yield the palm 
to good West Indian and Bahama pines, eaten on the spot 
where they grow, even as they fail to approach in quality 
those of Brazil and the South Sea Islands. Nor is this sur- 
prising : for in the one case the juice and flavour are drawn 
from the hot fumes of coke and coal, and in the other direct 
from the glorious rays of a tropical sun, some of the beams of 
which it seems to me they contrive to imprison under their 
scaly coats, even when they happen to be picked unripe and 
brought over for the English market. The fruit begins to 
ripen in April, and to yield until July : a few occasional pine- 
apples being produced all the year round. It is said (and I 
can well believe it, judging from the few plantations which 
we have seen) that a pine-apple field in full fruit is a- 
splendid sight. The bright orange fruit and scarlet leaves, 
in startling contrast, produce almost the appearance of a. 
conflagration ; and as the plantations are generally sur- 
rounded by mahogany, logwood, and cocoanut trees, overgrown 
with the pretty little love-vine and the scarlet hop, wild 
stephanotis; and a multitude of other flowers, the effect 
must indeed be glorious. 

When we at last reached Government House, nothing 
could exceed the kindness of Sir Charles and Lady Lees, who 
had caused a charming room to be prepared for us to dress 
and rest in. Among other delicacies we were given some 
delicious real cow's milk, which can only be properly appre- 
ciated after long and enforced abstinence and the consump- 



AMBULANCE MEETING. 327 

tion of all sorts of disagreeable substitutes. The rest of our 
party having arrived from the yacht, we all assembled in the 
drawing-room, where we found many pleasant people had 
been invited to meet us. There was the Bishop (Dr. Cramer - 
Eoberts), a most interesting gentleman, whom we had missed 
the pleasure of meeting at Jamaica; the Colonial Secretary 
and his wife (Mr. and Mrs. Taylor), the Attorney-General 
(who is also Speaker of the House of Assembly) and his 
wife (Mr. and Mrs. Malcolm), Major Maltby, commanding 
the troops in garrison, the American Consul, Mr. McLain, 
and Mr. Thompson, a police magistrate, at present acting as 
■private secretary to the Governor, whose permanent secretary 
has been ill, and has gone for a change to America. After 
dinner, Surgeon-Major Curran, Dr. Kirkwood, and Dr. Kemp 
arrived, together with Dr. Hudson from the yacht ; the 
Governor having kindly asked them all to come to arrange 
about an ambulance meeting for to-morrow — not an easy 
thing to get up at such short notice, especially considering 
that to-morrow is mail-day, an event which, when it occurs 
only once or twice a month, is, I can assure you, a very 
important affair. After a great deal of trouble we settled 
upon an hour that seemed to suit everybody as well as any 
hour could ; and it was decided that the meeting should be 
held in the Council Chamber, the Governor promising to take 
the chair. 

We drove down to the so-called Quay, but had considerable 
difficulty in getting into the boat, owing to the fact that a 
good deal of the stone-work forming the wall had been 
washed away, which necessitated our clambering over big- 
rocks and masses of ruined masonry. 




CHAPTEE XV. 

THE BAHAMAS. 

Wednesday, November 21st. 

IN the course of the night the mail-steamer arrived from 
New York ; but owing to her deep draught, and the 
present shallowness of the water in the harbour, she was 



A SMART YACHTSMAN. 329 

obliged to anchor outside, where we could just see her funnel 
and masts behind the rocks, near the lighthouse. The pas- 
sengers were being landed in small schooners about seven 
o'clock this morning, just as we started for what is called the 
Aquarium. The steamer herself would have to go round a 
long way to South Western -Bay to discharge her cargo. 

It was a bright -sunny morning, and Sampson appeared in 
his smartest of garments. I fear, however, that he is some- 
what of a turncoat ; for, whereas yesterday he was quite the 
English yachtsman in point of costume, to day he is quite the 
American : the transformation being, I suspect, due to the 
arrival of last night's steamer. The ' Spaniard ' had gone off 
to meet the new-comers ; but Buddy was to the fore, and 
23romised that the services of another diver should be placed 
at our disposal shortly. In the meantime it was rather 
amusing to hear Sampson, when he saw that we were ready to 
start, shout to Buddy- who was buried in a little sort of covered 
dog-kennel right in the bows — ' Now then ; all hands on deck ; 
make sail ! ' As soon as we were on board, we sped swiftly 
away before the favouring gale, not, however, without making 
a little detour, the object of which evidently was to afford 
Sampson the opportunity of shouting to some of his old 
friends on board the schooners which were landing the passen- 
gers from the steamer, and of allowing the said passengers to 
observe how well the ' Triton ' looked in the nice fresh breeze, 
dexterously handled by Sampson Stamp, owner and captain, 
who stood in a conspicuous attitude in the bows. Very 
amusing it was, also, when, later on, the jib and mainsail 
had to be hoisted, and Tom — who could not possibly see a sail 
go up or down without having a finger in the pie — began to 
pull at the sheets with all his might and main. Being some- 
what unaccustomed of late to handling light sails, the effect of 
this sudden display of energy was to send them up with such 
force that Buddy cried out, ' Thank you, Boss, that quite 

R R 



33o 'THE FAIRY SHIP: 



enough, thank you, Boss» Evidently ' Boss ' is a more im- 
portant personage than ' Massa,' for Buddy calls Sampson 
' Massa,' Tom ' Bqss,' and seems to regard the idea of the 
latter pulling ropes for himself when he could get someone 
else to do it for him as' a great joke. 

We were not long in stretching, across to ' the Fairy Ship/ 
as Sampson calls the remains of an old lime-laden schooner, 
which was wrecked in the fair -way and was afterwards towed 
across the channel to where she sank and now lies. The 
hull, with a few of the ribs still adhering to it, coated with 
coral, and with all kinds of beautiful forms of marine vege- 
table life growing up from it, is still distinctly visible. The 
lime barrels also, with all their hoops and staves, can be 
plainly distinguished. Doubtless the coral insects have been 
assisted in their labours by the calcareous dejjosit formed by 
the contents of the casks, which has incrusted all the bits of 
loose timber that are lying about the bottom of the sea, in- 
vesting them with a snowy whiteness. Among these frag- 
ments rested, swam, darted, and generally disported them- 
selves, fish of every conceivable hue, and of all the species- 
I have already faintly endeavoured to describe. As a rule 
they were smaller than those we had seen yesterday, but 
they were far more numerous. I could almost fancy that the 
Fairy-ship had been converted into a kind of ' creche ' for 
rearing young fish, or into a sort of Kindergarten, where they 
were sent to be educated and to be out of harm's way ; the 
recesses among the timbers of the wreck and the barrels of 
lime answering the double purpose of an excellent playground 
when lessons were over, and a series of harbours of refuge, 
into the nooks and crannies of which the more powerful 
enemies of the small fry could not penetrate to devour them. 
One by one we all went out in the very small leaky dinghy 
with Sampson and Buddy, in order to row exactly over the 
spot which the fish seemed specially to frequent, round one of 



THE AQUARIUMS 331 



the masts of the sunken vessel. But although the bottom of 
the ocean was, one might almost say, paved with what to us 
appeared rare shells of great beauty and brilliant colour, 
besides being ornamented by numerous algae and gorgonias 
and animated by the presence of many brilliant-hued fish, 
the scene altogether was not so enchanting as that of yester- 
day. There were not nearly so many varieties of corals and 
sponges, nor anything like the same number of gracefully 
shaped rocks and grottos for them to grow in and upon. 
Altogether the bright colours of the fish themselves were the 
feature of to-day that aroused our admiration, rather than 
the place they inhabited. The sea-bottom teemed with objects 
of interest ; but it was not ' Calypso's bower ' over again. 

We next went to another old wreck known as ' the 
Aquarium,' where we saw exactly the same kind of fish as 
before, only if possible in greater numbers and variety of 
colour. Fishing in the Bahamas must be very amusing work 
from all accounts. You bait your hooks and let them down 
over the boat's side. Then you take one of the sponge-glasses 
and watch all the finny creatures disporting themselves round 
and about the tender morsels, till at last one bolder and more 
adventurous, and perhaps more greedy than the others, takes 
the bait, and is hauled to the surface. None of these semi- 
tropical fish are very good to eat : at all events they do not 
suit an English palate, unless dressed up and disguised in 
some toothsome fashion. The barracuda is a fish that varies 
greatly in this respect, sometimes being good to eat and of 
excellent flavour, and at others malignantly poisonous, produ- 
cing pains in the joints, dizziness, and all sorts of unpleasant 
symptoms in those consuming it. Nobody seems to know 
exactly why there should be this difference in the character of 
the fish ; whether it depends on the season of the year at 
which they are caught, the island which they frequent, the 
food which they feed upon, or some peculiar disease from 



332 THE JEW FISH. 



which they happen to be suffering. Whatever may be . the 
cause, it is an unfortunate failing ; for when the barracuda 
is good I believe it is one of the best fish to be met with 
here ; although, as may be readily imagined, there is always 
an unpleasant amount of uncertainty and risk about the 
eating of it. Some persons say that only a negro can dress 
and cook the barracuda properly ; others make it a rule to 
cause a negro to eat some portion of the dish first ; and if 
it does him no harm, they enjoy the remainder in peace and 
comfort themselves : somewhat in the style of a Eoman 
Emperor and his slaves in the olden time, or of a Turkish 
Sultan and his attendants of the present day. Several other 
kinds of fish produce the same effect as that caused by eating 
the unseasonable barracuda, although in a rninor degree. 

There are a great many flying-fish here, which are exactly 
like rather dry fresh herrings, if eaten as soon as they are 
caught. Eeal dolphins are to be seen also, and other strange 
inhabitants of the deep. One they call a Jew fish, regarding 
which Mr. Tipping told us a curious story this morning. I 
have also heard a similar account from other people. 

+ 

I cannot tell how the truth may be, 
I but tell the tale as 'twas told to rue. 

The Jew fish is a big creature rather like a halibut, weigh- 
ing in some instances as much as six or seven hundredweight. 
At certain seasons of the year he and his friends hibernate ; 
and the fishermen, first observing their whereabouts through 
the ever-useful sponge-glass, dive to the bottom, fix a hook 
firmly into the fish, as he lies in a state of torpor, and haul 
their weighty prize on board the boat. Occasionally the 
finny monster happens to wake up at the critical moment and 
the fisherman has his hand bitten off ; but that is an event of 
very rare occurrence. The tale sounds almost too extra- 
ordinary to be true ; but the more we see of the world generally, 



i sea eggs: 



333 



the more we learn how far stranger than the wildest fiction 
the sternest facts and realities often are : so that I am not for 
a moment about to question the veracity of my informant. 

We coasted along the coral sides of the harbour, in order 
to gather specimens of echini, including the large brown 
variety, with their long poisonous spines, and of the pure 
white and innocuous kind, with shorter spines but equally 
systematically marked shells. These marvellous '-sea eggs,' 
both fresh and dried, abound here. In the latter form, as in 




South America, they are used as an article of food : the 
flavour will be found excellent, provided that the prejudice 
which some people entertain against them can be overcome, 
and I defy anyone to distinguish an omelette made from the 
best sort of 'sea eggs,' cool and fresh from the sea— with 
the tiniest suspicion of onion (or shall we say garlic ?) and 
the slightest flavour of ham — from one made from hen's eggs, 
taken new-laid and warm from the nest. Then we went on 
to the mouth of the harbour, to see the sponge-bank, from 
which some of the finest specimens of sponge are procured, 



334 'BLACK BEARD,' THE PIRATE. 

and the bed where the best conch-shells are found, at some 
distance below the surface of the water. The shells look very 
beautiful at the bottom ; but the sea was rather too rough to 
make it possible to send down to such a depth for them 
to-day. 

On our way back to the town, we saw in the distance 
Lord Dunmore's. country-house ; a picturesque place in the 
midst of fine plantations. The nobleman in question, who 
held office very nearly a hundred years ago, is said to have 
been one of the best governors that these islands ever had. 
Oddly enough, we crossed from Holyhead to Kingstown with 
the present Lord Dunmore in April last ; his lordship being 
on his way to catch a steamer at Queenstown, in order to 
cross the Atlantic to shoot big game, and to ' run a cattle- 
ranch ' in some wild region of the Great West ; while we 
were on our way to Dublin. Little did I then think that I 
should so soon see the seat of his ancestor's government, in 
this far-away colony. Not far from another country villa, 
known as ' Thompson's Folly,' is a very large tree which 
everybody who visits these islands is taken to see, and which 
is described to them as ' a banyan-tree, from the East Indies.' 
It is not really the Ficus indica, though it resembles that tree, 
except as regards the striking downwards and re-rooting of 
the branches. It bears an almost equally close resemblance, 
on an exaggerated scale, to the wild fig-trees that grow all 
over the island of Providence, and produces the same small 
fruit that they do. 

It was under one of these trees, somewhere on the spot 
now occupied by the parade-ground, that, about a hundred- 
and-eighty years ago, Black Beard, the noted pirate, whose 
real name was John Teach, used to hold his so-called court- 
of-justice, hanging his prisoners from the branches above, and 
roasting them with slow fires placed below ; he, meanwhile, 
being engaged in drunken orgies, or occupied in burying his 



ARMIES OF CRARS. 335 



ill-gotten treasures among or near the roots of the tree. 
Many writers have at various times described these scenes ; 
but nearly all differ in opinion as to where they took place : 
whether under the so-called banyan-tree, or beneath the great 
silk-cotton tree, the roots of which have a similar habit of 
growth and development above ground, forming many nooks 
and corners. These surround a grand central trunk, and in any 
one of them a man might live or a horse might be stabled. It 
can scarcely be considered a matter of very great importance 
which tree was patronised by Black Beard; especially as the 
two in question stood within a hundred yards of each other. 

Among other interesting objects which attracted our 
attention while we were cruising about the harbour were 
two complete armies of crabs, one consisting of land-crabs, 
each member of which is independently and perfectly con- 
stituted, the other of hermit-crabs, who have to steal the 
shells of other fish in order to secure the shelter which they 
need. The land-crab is much appreciated here, though not 
nearly such a toothsome morsel as in Jamaica, where, if 
properly cooked, it is regarded — especially by natives— as the 
greatest delicacy in the world. Soup carefully made from 
the land-crab is said to equal the best ' bisque, ' as prepared at 
the now extinct Bestaurant Philippe in Paris. 

The pangs of hunger — or rather a feeling of faintness— 
about this time reminded us that it would be desirable to 
join the rest of the party on board the yacht at breakfast ; 
after which the company dispersed in various directions, 
w r hile Tom and I remained behind to make the necessary 
preparations for our start this afternoon. In this occupation 
we were occasionally interrupted by sundry sable dealers in 
curiosities, who were constantly finding their way on board, 
bringing all sorts of shells, corals, gorgonias, sea-beans or 
l)ay-beans, and other marine curiosities. The ' bay-bean ' is 
a curious production of nature, and is, it is said, the fruit of 



336 A SPONGE-YARD. 



a plant that grows at the bottom of the sea. To me it looks 
much more like an ordinary nut or bean, grown on some 
distant shore, and afterwards well washed and worn by the 
action of the waves. It is about the size of an average 
great-coat button, of a brown colour, with a curious ring 
round it ; and when polished it somewhat resembles an onyx 
in appearance. Its origin is almost as mysterious as was 
that of the well-known coco-de-mer before the discovery of the 
Seychelle Islands, when the Lodoicea palm on which it grows 
was still unknown. These large woody nuts were found floating 
on the sea, or were cast up on the shores of islands, but no one 
knew in the least whence they came or what they were, and 
all sorts of occult properties and medical virtues were attri- 
buted to them. 1 

We went ashore at twelve to meet the Governor, who had 
promised to take us to see Messrs. Sawyer's sponge-yard, 
which is justly considered to be one of the most interesting 
objects of the place, and which is among the most exten- 
sive in the Bahamas. Mr. Sawyer himself is a prominent 
local personage, and was one of the members of the Bahamas 
Commission for the Fisheries Exhibition in London. One's 
first inclination on entering the yard was to paraphrase the 
exclamation of the celebrated parrot and to remark, ' Oh 
my, what a lot of sponges ! ' There were sponges every- 
where ; ' sponges in front of us ; sponges to right of us, 
sponges to left of us ' ; sponges enough, of every variety, 
quality, size, and shape, to please the fancy and meet the 
washing requirements of the whole world ; all lying piled up 
in great heaps about the wharf. There were warehouses full 
of sponges that were still unsorted, and great bins full of 

1 My friend, Miss Marianne North, whose beautiful collection of drawings 
we have admired at Kew, tells me that she has recently seen and made studies 
of these palms on the islands of Praslin and Curieuse, belonging to the 
Seychelles group. 



SPONGES. 



337 



those that were sorted. Many men— mostly negroes — were 
busily occupied in clipping, cutting, and separating the different 
varieties. Some men have a speciality for the last-named 
branch of the occupation, 
and divide ' sheep's wool ' 
and 'velvet,' 




MESSRS. SAWYER'S SPONGE-YARD 



qualities first, second, or third with the greatest possible dex- 
terity, clipping out the bad parts, throwing the sponges into 
the various baskets, and diminishing the large pile from which 
they are sorting in a marvellously short space of time. The 
Bahama sponges, which, for the purposes of commerce, are 
divided into eight sorts, though excellent in quality, are not 
so good as those of the Mediterranean ; but, I believe, a scheme 
has now been devised for taking cuttings of the best species of 
Mediterranean sponges, transplanting them to these waters, 
and grafting them on to the existing roots. The experiment 
has, however, not been very extensively tried at present. 
Formerly the best sponges were found off the islands of Abaco 
and Andros — especially the former — but within the last two 
years a very fine bed of ' sheep's wool ' sponges has been dis- 
covered near the island of Eleuthera, though they lie in such 
deep water that they cannot be got at' without dredging. It 
unfortunately happens that a few years ago the American 

s s 



VARIETIES OF SPONGES. 



fishermen were supposed to interfere with our trade and to 
seriously injure the young sponges by dredging over the Ba- 
hama banks. A law was consequently passed that no dredging 
should be allowed in these waters under any circumstances 
whatever; so that now the colonists are sorely perplexed as 
to how to get at the beautiful sponges which they have dis- 
covered, it being impossible for a diver to procure them from 
a depth of between sixty and seventy fathoms. 

The value of the sponges exported in 1882 and 1883 was 
6o,oooL The American consul at Nassau, in a recent official 
report, states that ' the sponge trade gives employment to 
several thousands of persons and some hundreds of vessels, 
the sponges being divided into coarse and fine, of which the 
former brings about 5 dollars per cwt., and the latter double 
that sum. The principal varieties, in the order of their value, 
are known as sheep-wool, white reef, abaco velvet, dark reef, 
boat, hardhead, grass, yellow, and glove ; and of some of these 
varieties there are several grades designated by numbers, all 
being used for mechanical, surgical, and bathing purposes. 

' The boats employed in sponging are small, with crews of 
from six to twelve men. About six weeks' provisions are taken 
on board, and the vessels then coast along the banks and reefs, 
where the water is shallow and generally so clear that the 
sponges are readily seen. They are brought to the surface 
by hooked poles, or sometimes by diving. When first drawn 
from the water they are covered with a soft gelatinous sub- 
stance as black as tar and full of organic life : the sponge, 
as we know, being only the skeleton of the organism. The 
day's catch is spread out on the deck, so as to kill the mass 
of animal life, which in expiring emits a most unpleasant 
odour. Then the spongers go ashore and build a pen, or 
" crawl," of stakes, close to the water's edge, so that the action 
of the tide may wash away the black covering ; the process 
being aided by pounding the sponges with sticks. As soon 



GREEN EBONY. 



339 



as this operation is completed, the sponges are strung upon 
small palmetto strips, three or four to a strip, which is called 
a " bead " ; after which they are taken to Nassau to be sold in 
the sponge market, under certain conditions and regulations : 
nobody being allowed to sell his cargo otherwise than through 
this sponge-exchange. On the conclusion of the sale the 
sponges are taken to the packing-yard, where they are sorted, 
clipped, soaked in tubs of lime-water, and spread out to dry 
in the sun. They are then pressed by machinery into bales, 




SPONGE SCHOONEKS 



containing ioo lbs. each, and in this state are shipped to 
England or the United States, the latter of which countries 
has become of late years almost the largest consumer of 
Bahama sponges.' 

As we were leaving the yard we saw several fine logs of 
mahogany being brought in, together with some curious frag- 
ments that looked like firewood. Mr. Sawyer told us that 
this was green ebony, and that it had been much used of late 
years to furnish a peculiarly dingy .green dye for the aesthetic 
tints required for ladies' dresses, as well as for furniture of 
the Queen Anne style. ' I suppose now,' he said, ' the 



340 TINTS OF VEGETATfON. 

European fashions have altered, for there is no longer any 
call for the dye ; therefore, as the wood is very valuable, I am 
going to stow it away till the taste for colours changes again, 
which it is sure to do in a few years' time.' It struck me as 
curious that the wave of frivolous fashion should have rolled 
so far across the ocean as to cause a little-known tree to be 
dragged forth from the obscurity of an almost primaeval 
forest, in the remote island of Andros, in order to gratif}^ 
the taste of a few somewhat eccentric persons. It is also 
remarkable that this particular hue s*hould have been sought 
for and discovered here, where, as in every other place in or 
near the tropics— and specially in the West Indies — all the 
colours of nature are bright and beautiful, not dirty and 
dingy. Any more deplorable contrast of colour cannot be 
conceived than that which would be produced by the appear- 
ance of a ' greenery yallery, Grosvenor Gallery ' sort of young 
man in the midst of the glorious verdure of a virgin forest, 
or of a limp and aesthetic young damsel, clad in washed-out 
blues, faded pinks, and muddy yellows — guiltless alike of 
crinoline, cuffs, and collars — amid the grand gorgeousness of 
a tropical garden. In these latitudes every shade of red and 
yellow is visible in 'abundance, varied by rich browns and 
chocolates : a perfect gamut of harmonious tints, ranging 
from the delicate inflection of the highest alto or soprano to 
the deep grandeur of basso profondo. Another circumstance 
that impressed me was the immense number of leguminous 
trees (trees bearing large pods like an exaggerated pea-pod) 
to be seen everywhere. The flamboyant, with its crimson and 
bright yellow flowers and enormous pods, which I have 
already described, is very abundant here ; as is also the 
• singing ' tree, which we first saw in Jamaica. The pecu- 
liarity of the latter, from which the tree derives its name, 
was, however, now much more readily observable; for the 
season for pretty fluffy flowers is quite over, and the pods 



1 SINGING- TREE: 341 



are much riper than those which we had previously seen ; 
so that they made, when stirred by the wind, a delicious 
soft cooing sort of noise, easily audible when all else was still. 
I think the masculine cynic, who tried his best to be ill- 
natured, . and called the ' singing-tree ' ' woman's tongue, 
because it was always chattering,' paid us ladies rather a 
pretty but unintentional compliment. I only wish all tongues 
were half so sweet and soft, and made so little mischief. 

I was pleased yesterday during our drive, and to-day 
in some of the gardens', to see that our little lizard friend of 
Gordon Town was largely represented. These diminutive 
creatures might be seen running about all over the place, 
with their pretty bright-green bodies, ever-changing brown- 
tinted tails, and bright-orange pouches. I was lucky enough 
to find some one who could tell me all about them, and from 
whom I learnt that they are a species of iguana, of which 
the pouch is a distinguishing feature. They are easily tamed, 
and are apparently very sensible to the influence of music. 
If you sit quite quiet in a garden where they abound, numbers 
of them will come tolerably near and will lie with their heads 
on one side, listening attentively, so long as you go on softly 
whistling to them ; scuttling away as fast as possible directly 
the sounds which charm them cease. 

' Then, often as he watched, or seemed to watch, 
So still the golden lizard on him paused.' 

Some of the species of iguana grow to a large size, at- 
taining a length of three, four, and even five feet, and are 
•considered a great delicacy as an article of food. The larger 
species are equally fond of being whistled to. The natives take 
advantage of, this weakness to fascinate them, and when they 
are under the influence of the spell slip a noose made of 
a piece of string over their heads, secure them, and carry 
them home in triumph to be killed and roasted before a slow 



342 TINNED FRUITS. 



fire. On the adjacent mainland and on the larger Bahama 
Islands the edible lizards are even bigger, and are much 
more plentiful. In Providence there are a few peccaries — 
a kind of wild boar — agoutis, and plenty of racoons, which 
are almost as much sought after as the iguanas as an article 
of food. 

From the sponge-wharf we proceeded to the establish- 
ment of Messrs. Johnson, to see the process of preparing 
pine-apples for exportation. The price paid by. the export- 
merchants for the fruit is a shilling a dozen, delivered on 
the wharf, or Is. M. for the finest selected pines suitable 
for the English market. These last are preserved whole in 
syrup, in extra large tins. We tasted some that had only 
been cooked and ' tinned ' yesterday, and could really hardly 
distinguish their flavour from that of fresh fruit. The manu- 
factory is not in full working order just now, the months of 
May, June, and July being the period of high pressure ; but 
there are always a few stray pine-apples coming in from the 
fields, that are utilised as they are purchased. The tinned 
guavas were equally good. I had never tasted them pre- 
served whole before. The process of 'tinning' the fruit is 
very simple. The ' apples,' as they always call the pines here, 
are first stripped of all their leaves ; then they are swiftly 
peeled ; stalk and eyes are dexterously removed ; and the best 
fruit are thrown whole into coppers full of hot syrup, where 
they are boiled ten times. They are then put singly into tins, 
which are afterwards hermetically sealed. Those of the second 
quality are cut into slices, and treated in the same manner. 
The third quality is cut into squares, the fourth is merely 
scraped; but all are cooked in syrup and are packed in this 
decorated with attractive pictures. Tomatoes are preserved 
somewhat in the same manner, minus the syrup. 

Messrs. Johnson are not allowed by the Customs regula- 
tions to sell their goods at the works, on account of the im- 



CULTIVATION OF THE PINE-APPLE. 343 

possibility, in 'the case of small quantities, of proportioning 
the exact value of the sugar, tins, and fruit respectively ; 
some of which articles pay duty here, while others do not. The 
difficulty was, however, got over in an easy, generous, and 
graceful manner by Mr. Johnson, who presented us with a 
box of his choicest assorted preserves, in order that we might 
taste them fresh, on the spot, before they had undergone the 
vicissitudes of a sea voyage. 

The pine-apple is supposed to have been introduced into 
the Bahamas about a hundred years ago ; but it was not until 
1842 that it became an article of export : a cargo being 
shipped in that year to the United States. The scarlet or 
Cuban pine, which was brought from Cuba in 1850, is now 
the most important variety, and is in the greatest demand in 
America ; whereas the sweeter and more juicy ' sugar-loaf ' 
is preferred in England. The ordinary soil of the Bahamas 
is scarcely suited to the cultivation of the pine-apple ; but in 
various parts of the islands there are large tracts of wonder- 
fully fertile red earth, said by geologists to be composed of 
decayed vegetable life, and the remains of coral insects and 
shell-fish. These tracts of land are well adapted to the pro- 
duction of the fruit, the cultivation and shipment of which 
now form the most important industry of the islands. The 
nearer the land is to the coast the greater is its value ; the 
facilities for shipping the fruit on board some of the small 
schooners which visit the various coast plantations during 
the harvest season being of course greater in proportion to 
the proximity of the plantations to the sea. 

There is only one annual pine-apple crop, though there are 
generally a few ' apples ' to be purchased at any period of the 
year. The cuttings from the scarlet pines take place between 
April and July; while the sugar-loaf pine is in the greatest 
perfection during July and August. Directly the fruit is ready 
to be cut, no time must be lost in gathering it and sending it 



344 PINE-APPLE TRADE. 



to market ■. The pine- shipping season is consequently a 
period of great activity in the Bahamas. The pine-apples 
intended for shipment must be cut as soon as they are full of 
juice, but while they are still green ; or they would be spoilt 
by the voyage. From seventy-five to one hundred cargoes of 
fruit are shipped from April to July ; and as an average cargo 
consists of at least 40,000 pine-apples, the total number 
exported during the season amounts to between four and five 
millions. The schooners which carry the fruit hail chiefly 
from New England and Baltimore, and they make the run to 
the United States in from four to eight days, according to 
the port for which they are bound. 

Mr. McLain, the United States Consul at Nassau, states 
that the business is extremely hazardous. ' If everything is 
favourable,' he says, 'good profits are realised; but a few 
untoward circumstances will bring utter ruin. There may be 
too much ram or a drought ; at times armies of rats and 
land-crabs invade and devour whole fields in a night or two ; 
bush-fires not infrequently devastate a plantation ; prices 
may rule low. If none of these things occur, and the fruit 
is put on shipboard in good order, the gauntlet of an ocean 
voyage has yet to be run, and adverse winds and stormy 
weather mean destruction by decay of the whole cargo, whilst 
the average of loss on the speediest trip is seldom below 
thirty-three per cent. Again, the ship may be borne on her 
course by prosperous breezes, and may arrive in port with 
her cargo in fine condition, only, alas ! to find other vessels 
just ahead of her, the market glutted, and her perishable fruit 
saleable only for what it will fetch. Only a small portion of 
the fruit is shipped from Nassau, vessels preferring to clear 
direct from the out-islands, where most of the fruit is grown, 
in order to save time and hurry the crop to market. As the 
voyage to England is a long one, the pine-apple plant is cut 
off at the root, and plant and fruit are shipped unseparated. 



« TINNING ' PINE-APPLES. 



345 



This is an expensive proceeding, but the prices realised in 
England justify it ; indeed, in no other way could the fruit 
be taken thither. The fruit remaining on the plant can be 
kept a long time.' 

All this, of course, refers to the exportation of the fresh 
uncooked fruit, the ' tinning ' process, as carried on at the yard 
we visited to-day, being another branch of the industry. 
During the season, as many as 25,000 pine-apples are cooked 
and sealed up in tins every day in Mr. Johnson's factory alone, 




SILK-CO (TON -TKF.E 



the total number of cans prepared in the course of the year 
varying from 200,000 to 250,000. There are also two other 
factories upon an out -island, at which about half the above 
quantity of tins are prepared each year. The bulk of both 
fresh and preserved fruit goes to the United States : the long 
voyage to England and other parts of the world throwing con- 

T T 



346 LIBRARY AT NASSAU. 



siderable difficulties in the way of successful exportation to 
those countries. 

From the pine-apple yard we went to the library, once the 
jail, where captured pirates and buccaneers were formerly 
confined, and where they doubtless suffered countless miseries. 
It is a curious octagonal building, with eight little recesses 
jutting out of the central hall — so to speak— which, from its 
peculiar shape, is admirably well adapted for a general reading- 
room. Originally the cells of criminals, these recesses, with 
their large windows overlooking the green parade-ground, now 
form a series of charming retreats for the bookworm. In 
the grounds outside the library are the huge silk-cotton-tree 
and the remains of the old banyan-tree already described as 
the scene of many of Black Beard's orgies and cruelties ; so 
that there is plenty of material on which the imagination of 
the student may run riot should he get tired of his books : 
and the murmur of innumerable bees, the hum of other 
insects, and the gentle chirpings of the birds among the 
branches of the giant tree, are conducive to dreaming, rather 
than to studying, during the intense heat of the day. 

The library at Nassau contains what appears to be a very 
good selection of about 7,000 volumes, to which Tom and 
I promised to add our small contribution. Also a very 
abundant supply of English and American newspapers, some 
of which — of very recent date— arrived by the steamer last 
night. The latter journals were only three days old, and con- 
tained all the latest telegraphic news, while the English 
papers were twelve days old. In one corner of the room is 
the nucleus of a small museum, containing, among other 
interesting things, some flint instruments and a curious 
• little stone-god from Turk's Island, which I coveted greatly. 
I am told that at San Salvador the remains of an Indian 
temple may still be seen ; and that curious implements 
and idols are occasionally found there. Old gold doubloons 



SILK- CO TTON- TREE. 



347 



and other coins, too, are frequently discovered among the 
islands, having either been cast up from the wrecks of 
treasure-ships or buried by pirates. Bather more than 
twenty years ago a poor woman found a number of bright 
gold Spanish coins, at least 200 years old, concealed under a 
rock in the island of Abaco. She sent them to the Governor 
as ' treasure-trove ; ' but he, as a reward for her honesty, 
made her a present of their value in real English sovereigns. 



On leaving the 
close examination of 
cotton-tree, 
by its fine 
buttresses. 
rious such 
be in Abys- 
in the South 
where they rear 
stems to a height 
feet, without a single 
the birds of the air 
but many creeping 
animals also find 
therein. All sorts 
in and upon their 
the beasts of the 
desert find their 
the mighty roots, 
tree we separated : 




INDIAN IDOLS 



library we made a 
the splendid old silk- 
surrounded 
natural 
How glo- 
trees must 
sinia and 
of Africa, 
their giant 
of 100 and 150 
break ! Not only do 
make their nests, 
things and smaller 
rest and shelter 
of plants flourish 
branches ; while 
field and of the 
habitations among 
Beneath the giant 
Tom and the Gover- 



nor going to visit the gaol, while we went to Mrs. Owens, to see 
some specimens of the well-known Bahama shell-work. The 
shells of which it is composed are exquisitely beautiful when 
closely examined ; and the taste and dexterity displayed in 
arranging them are worthy of much praise. I could not, 
however, think the effect when completed really good ; for it 



348 SHELLS AND PEARLS. 



reminded me somewhat painfully of similar works of ' art ' pro- 
duced at Kamsgate and Margate. At a jewellery establishment 
in Bay Street we saw some beautiful pink and other delicately 
coloured pearls, which are found, as already mentioned, in the 
flesh of the common conch, and are set much store by, espe- 
cially in Paris. Personally, 1 am of opinion that the value of 
the pink shells is greatly overrated, and that it is their rarity, 
not their beauty, that causes them to realise such high prices. 
The dealers do not care to sell them here. They absolutely 
refused to part with any of the best specimens, making a 
great favour of letting me have a few more curious, if less valu- 
able, pearls, on the sale of which they must have made a con- 
siderable profit. One very perfect pearl, of an exquisite colour, 
showing all the water-marks, and of that curious flattened 
spheroidal shape which all the best j>earls here assume — 
something between the form of a pear and that of an egg — 
was valued at 160L I thought it looked like a bit of fine 
coral, and should have been sorry to have given the price 
asked for it, or, indeed, for any of the more expensive or 
perfect specimens. Ambergris, which I have already referred 
to, was also for sale here at the price of one guinea per ounce. 
Queer brownish-black, oily-looking stuff it is, very light to the 
touch, and very unpleasant to the smell. 

While we were in the shop two negroes entered, and, in 
transatlantic parlance, ' loafed around,' peeping at all the cases, 
but asking for nothing. First the assistant and then the 
owner of the shop politely requested them to depart, which 
they declined to do, remarking that they ' liked looking about.' 
They continued to gratify their curiosity for some time, and 
then strolled casually out. The proprietor told us that this 
was not at all an unusual incident, and that his unwelcome 
visitors occasionally not only looked round, but picked up 
any little ' unconsidered trifle ' that might be lying about, 
and walked off with it. 



AMBULANCE MEETING. 



349 



The black population of Nassau predominates in numbers 
considerably over the white ; and, as a rule, we have been 
struck with their excellent manners, and the good English 
they speak— very different from the curious and almost in- 
comprehensible jargon used in Trinidad and Jamaica. They 
seem to be scrupulously clean, both in their persons and their 
dwellings, and their dress in the streets is always neat and 
picturesque. 

It now being more than half-past one, and our Ambulance 
meeting having been fixed for two, it was high time to hurry 
up to the Governor's residence to get a hasty lunch, or rather 
' snack,' for there was no time for more, notwithstanding all the 
kind preparations that had been made to entertain us. Then 
we all went off to the Council Chamber, where the meeting 
was to be held, under the presidency 
Jj||l|l| of the Governor. The apartment, 

which is well lighted by windows on 
three sides, is unpretentious, and can 
seat comfortably about 150 persons. 
At one end was a platform, slightly 
raised above the uncarpeted floor, 
draped with red bunting, and sur- 
mounted by the red cross of St. George. 
Upon this stood the chair, with others 
on either side of it, a small table 





35° A DISTINGUISHED AUDIENCE. 



covered with red cloth, and a semi-circle of seats facing the 
audience. The room was fairly filled by the most important 
people in the island, and by many plantation-owners from 
other islands, who happened to be in Nassau. It was extremely 
gratifying, considering the shortness of the notice that had 
been given, to see that the Bishop, the Colonial Secretary, the 
Attorney-General, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, and 
many members of the Council were all present ; and it was 
specially satisfactory to observe that every doctor in the place 
had put in an appearance ; for on the countenance and support 
of the medical profession the success of the Ambulance move- 
ment must depend to a great extent. Many clergymen of all 
denominations, and most of the principal gentry in the place, 
both white and coloured — the latter largely predominating — 
were also present. The mode of procedure at the meeting not 
having been arranged beforehand, not so many speeches were 
made as might have been expected, which I regretted, both on 
account of the good influence they might have had, and also 
because I should have liked to have heard some of the pro- 
minent speakers in the House of Assembly. Those who did 
address the meeting spoke so clearly and so well, that I much 
regretted that they were not more numerous. The great point 
was, however, gained. Everybody seemed interested in the 
object of the meeting, and it appeared likely that they would 
be roused to do something to help in the future, now that the 
subject was fairly brought to their notice. 

A resolution, proposed by the Governor and seconded oy 
the Colonial Secretary, was unanimously carried, to the effect 
that a centre should be at once established, and that a pre- 
liminary committee should be formed, of which the Governor 
consented to be president, and various influential persons pro- 
mised to become members. Everyone seemed pleased with 
the address of Dr. Hudson, who explained the Ambulance 
scheme in an interesting manner. The Governor, in the 



THE 'VOYAGE IN THE SUNBEAM? 351 



course of his remarks, alluded to several curious coincidences, 
which he jokingly attributed to the influence of some sort of 
electric current. It seems that for the last few years the 
' Voyage in the Sunbeam ' has been known in these islands ; 
many households possess a copy of the book, and a considerable 
number of the inhabitants have read it. It might reason- 
ably be supposed, therefore, that the work by this time would 
have lost any special interest which it may have possessed, 
and that, sharing the fate of many other books of the kind, it 
has been more or less forgotten. From some inexplicable 
cause, however (for our arrival here was quite unexpected), 
during the last few weeks the demand for the book has re- 
vived in a marked manner. There has been a fresh ' run ' 
upon the copy in the public library, besides which the Bishop 
und two other people have lent their copies to friends who 
had never seen it before, and who had now no idea that we 
were in the West Indies, nor that we were likely to visit the 
Bahamas. The Governor added that he met two young ladies 
yesterday, making off to the shore to see the ' large steam 
yacht that had just come in,' as they had been reading about 
the ' Sunbeam,' and thought perhaps it might be something like 
her. When told that it was really and actually the ' Sunbeam ' 
herself, they could scarcely believe their ears, and thought that, 
the Governor was making fun of them ; especially when he 
added, that I had asked him to invite any of his friends who 
might wish. to do so to come on board, in order that they 
might have the opportunity of a closer inspection of the 
vessel. Two letters he had received from the parents of 
children, asking leave for their little ones to pay us a visit, on 
the ground that they had just read the book, and were wild 
with excitement to see the yacht. Further, the very morning 
before we entered the port, the ' Nassau Guardian ' contained 
a description of the things which I had sent to the London 
Fisheries Exhibition, and announced the award of a gold 



352 VICTORIA HOTEL. 



medal and diploma for the same. It certainly was a strange 
combination of circumstances, which might, were one mes- 
merically inclined, well be attributed to a magnetic or electric 
influence of some sort. 

Another curious thing happened. I was addressing the 
meeting and speaking of the absolute necessity of rendering 
very speedy aid in the case of injury to an artery, and the 
great advantage of that aid being not only speedy but skilled, 
when I saw a boy rush into the room, looking very much 
flurried, and address some hurried words to Dr. Kemp, who 
rose and departed at once. The Doctor told me after- 
wards, when he came on board the yacht, that he had been 
called to see a poor boy who had fallen through a window, 
and had severed his radial artery near the wrist. When the 
doctor arrived the child had nearly bled to death, owing t& 
the fact that not one of the bystanders had the slightest 
idea how to check the rush of those bright red jets that were 
gradually draining the life-blood from his heart. 

After the meeting was over, and we had been introduced 
to some of the principal people present, we went with the 
Governor and Lady Lees to inspect the Victoria Hotel, which 
is really a very fine edifice, built so as exactly to suit the 
exigencies of the climate, with lofty rooms, nicely furnished, 
a wide balcony running all round it, and a little terrace 
on the top, commanding a wonderful view over the city of 
Nassau and the adjacent country and islands, including 
Fincastle Fort, erected by Lord Dunmore in 1789, which, by 
a very slight stretch of the imagination, might be found to 
resemble a paddle-wheel steamer. The hotel is, I believe, 
excellently well conducted by a civil and obliging manager — 
one Mr. Morton — of whom all travellers speak highly. The 
garden contains some splendid cotton-trees and some pretty 
' lily-trees,' as they call them here ; although I should de- 
scribe them as a sort of datura or brugmansia. From the 



FLAMINGO WINGS. 353 

hotel we went to see the corals and sponges which we had 
collected yesterday, and which by now were tolerably clean 
and really looked quite lovely. I felt very proud of my 
grand specimen of convoluted ' brain-coral,' and of a smaller 
piece of the purest white coral, with a beautiful spray of 
mauve-coloured cea-fan attached. They are to be packed 
and sent to England direct from here ; for they are too 
bulky to take on the yacht, which is already pretty well filled 
with stores and provisions, to say nothing of our friends' 
and our own luggage. There were some fine scarlet and pink 
flamingo-wings hanging up in the yard, which had come from 
the Island of Andros, one of the largest of the Archipelago, 
where I am told that it is a standing marvel to see these 
birds in vast flocks, making the whole horizon pink as they 
rise and wheel in the air, just as we had seen them at Lake 
Menzaleh, in Egypt, last winter. Andros is a large and fertile 
island, containing much good, but at present uncultivated, 
land. Capital wild-fowl shooting is to be had there ; besides 
which game and turtles abound. 

On our way to the boat we went to see what they call 
a ' turtle-kraal,' consisting of a large tank, in which were a 
number of turtle, flapping and swimming and slopping about. 
These creatures abound in the Bahamas ; but, I suppose, are 
not always to be caught at the moment when they are wanted 
— when an unexpected guest arrives at the dinner-table, for 
instance — which is doubtless the reason why this mode of 
keeping them is adopted. We next visited the hospital, a fine 
building, to make the arrangements for one of our men, named 
Baulf, who has been ill, to remain there until he can get 
a ship to take him home. We are all sorry to Jose him, for 
he is a first-rate seaman, and a general favourite with all on 
board. As a matter of fact, however, I believe he had to leave 
the Boyal Navy on account of his unfitness for hard work; 
and perhaps he ought "never to have shipped with us at all, 

u v 



354 THE < LILY-FLO WER: 



although he could scarcely have had lighter work at sea than 
on board the ' Sunbeam.' Having a large family, however, I 
suppose he wanted to do what he could to earn his living. It 
is a great pity, both for the sake of the. men themselves, as 
well as for that of owners and captains, that a medical 
examination, previous to signing articles for a long voyage, 
should not be made compulsory. 

To-day and yesterday have been busy days for everybody 
on board ; all hands having been hard at work stowing our 
beautiful 'white wings,' shifting our light sails, and substi- 
tuting the old booms and storm-stained, weather-beaten 
canvas, which has braved many a tempest and many a gale, 
and making prudent preparation for our voyage across the 
Atlantic. The ' Sunbeam ' has now been in commission for 
three years, instead of for one only, as was originally in- 
tended when she was fitted out. Her ropes, sails, and gear of 
all kinds are therefore becoming somewhat chafed and worn ; 
though I hope they will carry us home safely this time. 
There is also something wrong with the rudder, and it is 
thought that the rudder-head has too much play. Relieving 
tackle has accordingly been fitted in readiness for an emer- 
gency ; though of course the yacht could not be handled so 
well with that as with the ordinary wheel. It is to be hoped 
therefore that we shall not encounter any bad weather till we 
reach Bermuda, where she can be docked if necessary. 

About half-past three our guests began to put in an ap- 
pearance, and continued to arrive in a continuous stream for 
more than an hour. Sir Charles and Lady Lees were most 
kind, standing near the gangway and introducing the visitors 
to me, as they came on board. Many of them brought me 
fragrant flowers and lovely shells, some of which were of kinds 
which I had never seen before. The Bishop presented me 
with a specimen of the curious 'lily-flower,' that only blooms 
once in two or three years, and emits a most delicious odour. 



NUMBER OF THE BAHAMA ISLANDS. 



355 



It is of a bright yellow colour, something like a datura, 
tied-in half way up, with a campanula-like hell-shaped lip. 
Mrs. Wilshere, 
the wife of the 
Baptist mis- 
sionary here 
(who cruises for 
many months 
in every year 
in his tiny 
cutter - yacht 
among the 
Islands) sent 
me a most 
charming little 
basket, made of 
the interior fibres of 
a palm, containing 
some rare curiosities, 
together with a letter, in 
which she explained that 

they had been brought from some of the out-islands in her 
husband's boat, the 'A. H. Baynes,' which has accomplished 
ten thousand miles of travel in these waters during the 
present year. 

In the course of conversation a question arose as to what 
was the exact number of the islands comprising the Bahama 
group. It was strange to find that no one on board had a 
very clear idea on the subject, and that some of the wildest 
guesses, ranging between 300 and 3,000, were made. In- 
cluding cays and rocks, the latter number is perhaps nearer 
the mark. The outer line of the West India Islands are, as 
"we know, distributed in the form of an arc, stretching from a 
point near the coast of Florida, in a south-easterly direction, 




356 PARTING WITH FRIENDS. 

to the mouth of the Orinoco, nearly 2,000 miles distant. 
The north-westerly portion of this chain is composed of the 
Bahama Archipelago, which, according to the best authorities, 
consist of thirty-nine islands — only twenty of which are 
inhabited — 681 cays, and 2,387 rocks ! 

Our guests, appeared to be greatly interested in the yacht, 
and in examining the various cabins, although I am afraid 
that they found the passages below rather too narrow for 
the free circulation of so many people at once. They were so 
anxious to see everything, however, that they did not seem 
to mind the delay, and they were so appreciative that it 
was quite a pleasure to show them round, notwithstanding 
the somewhat close atmosphere, which made ices, tea, and 
' cups ' on deck very acceptable after the tour of inspection 
was o v er. 

In the middle of it all poor Baulf had to go on shore to the 
hospital, as arranged. He did not like leaving his shipmates, 
and yet was almost equally reluctant to stay on board, 
knowing that he would be unable to perform his share of the 
work, and that others must do it for him. There was accord- 
ingly no alternative but to leave him behind. 

We had arranged to sail at six o'clock, and shortly before 
that time the last of our guests had departed. 

From Sir Charles, Lady and Miss Lees, as well as from 
many others, we parted with regret ; for although our acquaint- 
ance had been so short, literally only of yesterday, we felt that 
we had already made several real friends. Directly every- 
body was gone, preparations for our voyage were continued. 
Quarter-boards were shipped once more ; all the loose spars 
were taken down from the top of the deck-house, and other 
things that were in the way were stowed either below or on 
deck : boats were secured in-board, and every precaution was 
taken against the worst weather that we could expect to 
encounter ; although what we really anticipated was a quick 



WELL-TO-DO PEOPLE. 357 



smooth passage, with a fair wind. Sampson was immensely 
interested in and amused by all our preparations, and as a 
last warning remarked, ' Mind hoys, for Nassau light, no mis- 
take Hole-in-the-Wall light, like other captain did. Sampson 
understands how that was done. Ship go out one night ; never 
-come hack. Plenty of boots on shore on Berry Island that 
night.' Very probably the ship to which he referred was 
heavily insured, and was run ashore on purpose ; and every- 
body knew it — including Sampson, who no doubt picked up 
some of the floating boots and shoes, much to his own and his 
family's satisfaction. 

I don't think that anything struck us so much during our 
very brief stay here as the well-to-do look of the people and of 
the place, as compared with the appearance of Jamaica and 
Trinidad and their inhabitants. I suppose the explanation is 
to be found in the fact that a comparatively temperate climate 
suits the Anglo-Saxon race better than tropical heat ; and that, 
being more full of ' go ' themselves, they take more care of 
their houses, and get on better ' right through,' as some of 
our American cousins would say. The soldiers wear much 
the same dress as in Jamaica, and look very smart. I wish 
our poor sailors at Kingston looked half as well and lively as. 
the men do here; but I don't think English constitutions will 
ever endure that hot steamy Jamaica climate and remain 
well ; and I cannot but agree with Tom that it is undesirable 
to keep so many men there, wasting all the energy they have 
left after their vain efforts to keep themselves cool, in mending 
the leaks in the dockyard roofs : for it is impossible to repair a 
ship of any considerable size at Port Eoyal, and there is 
nothing else to be done. 

Our pilot, having worried us to be ready 'exactly at six, 
Massa,' announced, when that hour arrived, that the tide 
would not serve until seven ; afterwards postponing the start 
until eight, and then nine. Finally, it was very nearly 



358 



DEPARTURE. 



midnight before we steamed out of the pretty shallow little 
harbour of Nassau. Long before that hour arrived I had 
retired to bed, thoroughly exhausted and worn out by hard 
work, and suffering from what appeared to be an incipient 

attack of fever. 





CHAPTER XVI. 

BAHAMAS TO BERMUDAS. 

' Oh, what a tempest whirl'd us hither ! 
Winds whose savage breath could wither 
All the light and languid flowers 
That bloom in Epicurus' bowers ! ' 

AT 12.55 the next morning we landed our pilot, of which 
circumstance I have only a drowsy recollection. At 
4 a.m. we set fore-sail, stay-sail, standing- and boom-jibs, and 
mizen ; and at eight the main-sail. At nine, having had a 
somewhat disturbed night, I for a wonder was asleep, when 
Tom called me and invited me to go on to the top of the 
deck-house to see the ' Hole-in-the-Wall,' with the lighthouse 
called by the same name, on the Island of Abaco. The 
appearance of the natural arch in the rock is curious ; and 
under some conditions of light must doubtless be very beauti- 
ful, particularly in the sunset, when the glowing tints of a 



360 ELEUTHERA. 



semi-tropical sky completely fill up the background. Spanish 
Wells is the name of the town on St. George's Cay, at the 
extreme north-west point of the island of Eleuthera. We 
could just see the houses in the distance. Each is built un 
a sort of raised platform, like similar dwellings in the Malay 
Archipelago ; a mode of construction which makes them look 
from afar as if they stood on legs, and could at any time 
change their position without much difficulty. This style of 
building is adopted as a precaution against the hermit-crabs, 
which sometimes come ashore in vast numbers, ravaging the 
land and even entering the dwellings of the inhabitants, when 
they are not protected against the attacks of the Crustacea in 
the way I have just described. The ovens are built outside 
and in front of the houses, instead of inside. The women 
wear a quaint kind of long-shaped cardboard bonnet, covered 
with calico, something like an old-fashioned sun-bonnet, 
called a 'rauntamskoot.' On the opposite side of the narrow 
Providence N.E. Channel to the Hole-in-the-Wall Light- is 
Harbour Island, the capital of which is Dunmore Town, the 
second largest town in the Islands, with a population of about 
two thousand persons, who almost exclusively earn their live- 
lihood by growing pines on the comparatively uninhabited 
island of Eleuthera, the great pine-garden of the Bahamas. 
One traveller has graphically described how, every morning, 
at sunrise, a fleet of upwards of two hundred boats spreads 
its wings to the trade-winds and wafts eight hundred men 
and boys of every shade of colour to the beach and cocoa- 
nut groves of Eleuthera, two miles away, to cultivate the 
flame-coloured scarlet-spiked fruit. The finest and largest 
of the pines, weighing from five to seven pounds, can be 
bought on the spot for one penny each. Cocoanuts cost less 
than half this price, and are said to be particularly fine at 
Eleuthera, and almost as good as those found in the South 
Sea Islands. The advice of one lady we met was : ' Just 



■GLASS WINDOW: 361 



you go down to Eleuthera, and when you are tired of eating 
pines, send a little black boy up a cocoanut tree, and tell him 
to get you some nice jelly-nuts; and you'll find them real 
good.' The cocoanuts are called 'jelly-nuts' before the flesh 
is ripe and has hardened, and while it can still be scraped 
off in the form of a delicious thin pulp ; the nut itself being 
quite full of refreshingly cool milk. Probably the reason of 
the superiority of both pines and cocoanuts lies in the fact 
that Eleuthera is the outermost of the islands, forming, in fact, 
quite a breakwater to them for a distance of some seventy 
miles ; so that it is swept and purified by the unpolluted 
Atlantic breezes, just as the South Sea Islands are freshened 
and invigorated by the Pacific breezes. The exposed position 
of the island, however, sometimes leads to disastrous conse- 
quences. About twelve years ago a large picnic party were 
lunching at a beautiful place called ' Glass Window,' where 
there is a curious and perfect arch of limestone, from the centre 
of which a plumb-line can be dropped into the sea a distance 
of 85 feet. Suddenly, without any warning, a great tidal- wave 
came rushing in from the ocean, dashing up under the arch, 
and sweeping some of the party to destruction ; while others 
were almost miraculously saved. These apparently unaccount- 
able risings of the waves are called by the natives ' rages,' and 
are probably caused by a storm some distance off in the broad 
Atlantic, the effects of which the very narrow coral-reef at this 
point is powerless to withstand. Not far from Glass Window 
is New Gregory's Harbour, where there is a splendid cave, ex- 
tending more than eleven hundred feet under ground, and full 
of beautiful reddish-brown stalactites and stalagmites. To the 
south-east of Eleuthera is Cat Island, long believed to be the 
first landing : place of Columbus, in 1492, and to have, there- 
fore, been called by him San Salvador ; by which name I 
believe it is still known to Americans. We English, on the 
contrary, after much careful consideration of Columbus's 

x x 



362 THE OLD NAVIGATORS. 



somewhat imperfect journal, and comparison of his charts 
with those of the present day, have come to the conclusion 
that a much smaller island, further to the southward and 
eastward, called Watling Island (but now also known as San 
Salvador), is the historic landing-place in question. The 
three reasons that lead to this conclusion are, first, that 
Watling Island lies more in the track of Columbus than Cat 
Island could have done ; secondly, that he specially mentions 
having rowed round San Salvador in a single day, a feat that 
could easily be accomplished as regards Watling, while it is 
practically impossible at Cat Island ; thirdly, that he mentions- 
a large inland lake which exists on Watling, whereas there 
is no water on Cat Island. 

I have not said much about the grand old navigators, who 
in their curiously shaped caravels, the biggest of which was. 
only of one hundred tons, the smallest of leg's than twenty, 
traversed these often stormy seas without really knowing where 
they were going. Think of their joy, tempered by many 
uncertainties and misgivings, on first sighting land, after 
their long and stormy voyage ; then their still greater delight 
on finding that they had arrived at such beautiful islands, 
and that their lives were, for a time at least, to be cast in 
such pleasant places, to make up for the hardships of the 
past ; until the enterprising navigator, whose guiding hand 
had led them thus far, hurried them on, ever keen for fresh 
fields of adventure, to where there were other worlds to dis- 
cover, and to conquer t >o. How much we all owe to these 
gallant men, and to their patient bearing of many hardships. 

Ere long the islands rapidly became more and more indis- 
tinct, the last object that we could clearly distinguish being 
the Elbow Light, on Great Abaco, near Abaco city — as a little 
hamlet of fishing-huts, the chief place in the island, is some- 
what pretentiously called. Soon even that faded away into 
blue mist, which, in its turn, disappeared. So ended our all 



SARGASSO-WEED. 363 



too short visit to the Isles of Summer ; and for the present 
our remembrance of the delightful Bahamas must be placed 
in one of the many pigeon-holes of the past, to be a joy in 
the future. Of all that we have seen on our present cruise, 
these islands with their lovely coral reefs have certainly in- 
terested me most, notwithstanding the fact that all my early 
longings had been to see many of the places we had just pre- 
viously visited, while of the Bahamas I had heard compara- 
tively nothing, until after our return from our voyage round the 
world in 1877, when a friend, seeing my collection of corals, 
told me about the reefs here. It was, however, chiefly the 
wonderful display at the London Fisheries Exhibition that 
made me long to see for myself where such interesting and 
beautiful things had their local habitation. 

Friday, November 23rd.— ki 2 a.m. we set the top-gallant 
sail. As the sun rose the wind freshened, and until eleven the 
weather was rough and squally. Then it seemed to mend a 
little ; and by four o'clock we hoped that we were in the regular 
Trades. All through yesterday and to-day we have been 
passing through great quantities of sargasso-weed ; and in the 
course of the afternoon large masses of it were seen floating 
about. We got a good deal on board with boat-hooks and 
nets, and found that the specimens which we had collected 
comprised four distinct varieties, differing widely in their 
manner of growth, but all having little sprouts which were 
visible above the surface of the sea, and each of which 
produced its own independent growth. It was apparently 
spring-time with the sargasso-weed ; for although all full 
of fruit, it was also sending out fresh shoots in every 
direction. Many of the bunches which we picked up were 
covered with, small parasites of various kinds, and with tiny 
shells. The delicate rare work of the flustra covered the 
stems and berries in some cases so completely that they 
looked almost like incipient corals ; while many of the leaves 



364 



VARIETIES OF SARGASSO. 




were complete- 
ly enveloped by 
the intricate 
network of the 
roots of the 
l t pretty plume- 

like Bryopsis 
plumosa. We secured 
some hundreds of speci- 
mens, but could not find among them more 
than five distinct varieties in all. I had not 
a good book on sea-weed to refer to, but we 
came to the conclusion that two of the speci- 
mens were undoubtedly Sargassum bacciferum 
and Sargassum vulgare respectively ; while 
to others, which we could not recognise, we" 
gave names of our own for the moment, to 
distinguish them, according to their style 
of growth. One variety has rather fine 
leaves, while its berries grow in tiny clusters, with little 
tendrils hanging from them, like grapes on a vine ; whence 
it derives one of its names, that of sea-grape. It is much 
more like a vine than any sea- weed I have before seen. 
This we have called Sargassum uvoides. Another grows like 
=a hop-bine, with a little tassel, so to speak, and broader 






SCARCITY OF BOTTLES. 365 



leaves, among which the berries are concealed, just as the 
hops are hidden among the leaves in our hop-gardens in 
Sussex. This we have called Sargassum humulifolium. 1 An- 
other, which grows exactly like a willow, with long pointed 
narrow leaves, and which bears its berries almost on its stem, 
we have named Sargassum salicifolium. I dried and bottled a 
great many specimens for further scientific investigation on my 
return, and was rather amused to find that my example had 
been largely followed by everybody on board; so that when 
both the cook and the head- steward were asked by one of 
the children for ' Please, one more bottle,' they both replied, 
* Bottles, Miss ! why everybody in the ship has been bottling 
up that weed stuff, and there is not a single empty bottle left 
on board ! ' I believe, as a matter of fact, that we have 
nearly five dozen of Sargassum, nicely bottled and preserved, 
in the very strongest salt and water. It is a beauti- 
ful object in itself, and to even the most thoughtless and 
ignorant of the seafaring world has some mysterious connec- 
tion, they know not what, with Columbus and the discovery 
of the New World. To people of better education and of 
more inquiring minds, it is still more interesting and marvel- 
lous. A species, or rather a genus of marine plants, entirely 
distinct from and quite unallied with any other, growing in 
only one part of the world — where it covers a surface of 
many thousand square miles — though an occasional stray 
branch may be washed to our northern shores by the action 
of the equally wonderful Gulf Stream. What is it ? Whence 
does it come ? Is it really all that remains of a submerged 
continent, which, according to one theory, once filled up the 
Gulf of Florida, and of which the Greater and Lesser Antilles, 



1 Although I have described the curious little globes of the sargasso-weed 
as fruits and berries, on account of their outward appearance, they are in fact 
nothing but air-vessels, similar in character, if not in form, to the air-vessels 
of our English ' bladder-wrack.' 



366 



A SPLENDID SUNSET. 



the Windward and Leeward Islands, and in fact the whole 
of the West Indian Islands and Bahamas, were originally the 
mountain summits ? 

Saturday, November 24th. — Still contrary winds, which 
came as rather an unpleasant surprise ; for we had fully 
hoped that we might he favoured hy a fresh fan* breeze. 
Our position at mid-day was lat. 30, 3 N., long, yj, 28 W. ; 
Bermuda being 640 miles distant. It was, therefore, evident 
that we had been making a great deal of ' Northing,' and 

that we must wait for our 
' Easting ' till the wind 
shifted. We witnessed, 
this evening, one of the 
most splendid sunsets con- 
ceivable. The sky had 
just previously been a 
mass of black clouds ; and 
we had never thought of 
seeing anything remark- 
able. Suddenly the whole 
of the dark clouds that 
covered the western sky 
looked as if they had been 
perforated by cannon- 
balls and shells : gorgeous 
flashes of red and orange being visible through the fissures, 
and presenting the most extraordinary effect. Then, as they 
gradually faded away, the clouds seemed to melt into the 
sea, leaving only a narrow strip of black, with a glorious 
afterglow of orange and scarlet, spreading over the heavens 
almost like an aurora borealis. The night that followed the 
exhibition of this wonderful phenomenon was somewhat rough 
and stormy. 

Sunday, November 2$th. — At 6 a.m. we weathered a brig 




A CATASTROPHE. 367 



standing to the north. At 12.30 we lighted the engine-room 
tires, the wind having died away. At 2 we put them out 
again, because a breeze had sprung up. An hour later we set 
the main-sail ; and at 4 we had evening service. At 6 we 
were again becalmed, and re-lighted tires. At 7 we took in 
the main-sail; at 8 commenced steaming; and at 9.30 stowed 
the mizen. 

Monday, November 26th. — It was. such a lovely day that we 
found it scarcely possible to believe that we were on the bosom 
of the broad Atlantic, far from the shelter of any friendly 
haven. All hands were busily occupied in executing small 
repairs, and in fitting studding-sail-booms with ' Turks.' 
heads ' to keep boats off in harbour. The appearance of white 
paint on the outside of a vessel is cool and effective ; but it 
requires much care when all sorts of dirty boats are con- 
tinually coming alongside. 

A terrible catastrophe occurred this morning. Since the 
weather has been cooler (I can scarcely say colder ; for the 
thermometer is still 72 in the shade) all the tropical animals 
have felt the change very much, and have been put beside the 
steam-chest for the sake of the warmth. Unfortunately, some 
careless person to-day, while the decks were being washed, 
put one of the cages on the top of the steam-chest, and the 
two poor little mongooses, which were unfortunately inside, 
were literally roasted to death. The flesh of one was quite 
cooked, while of the other the doctor was able to preserve the 
skin. I think the fumes must have suffocated the poor little 
creatures at once, so that we will hope they did not suffer 
much. They were great favourites with all on board, besides 
being very useful in catching rats, mice, cockroaches, and 
beetles of all kinds. I subsequently discovered the unfortu- 
nate delinquent who committed the dreadful deed, and who 
now, as I read from his dejected looks, bewails the catastrophe 
more bitterly than anybody on board, although he had not the 



3 68 



OPOSSUMS. 



courage to confess his sins. Why the monkey and the 
opossum were not roasted too I do not exactly know ; but they 
were just taken off in time, almost dead. Baby's last remain- 
ing dove from the Trinidad pitch-lake was killed, but 
Moonie's pigeon survived. 

We have not been lucky in the matter of pets this voyage. 
Two out of the three little opossums got through the wires 
of their cage, and have either gone overboard or are run- 
ning about the ship somewhere. The other is a great pet, 
in spite of its ugliness. I had no idea that opossums were 
ever so small. This one does not weigh more than four 
or five pounds. She has very sharp-pointed nose and ears,, 
with small eyes, and a long furry body ; is rather in- 
clined to be ' porcupinish ' about the back, and has in ad- 
dition a long, tapering, perfectly bare, prehensile tail, and a 
little pouch wherein to carry her young, whicn unfortunately 

at the pre- 
sent moment 
are lost to 
sight, though, 
I think, to 
memory dear ; 
for there is a 
certain sad- 
ness in the 
mother's as- 
pect. She 
sleeps most of the day, but is lively at night. I hope we shall 
get her home all safely, ugly as she is. I really think she is 
one of the very ugliest creatures I ever saw, in spite of her 
engaging ways. 

It was a glorious day, and the sea was fairly smooth, con- 
sidering that the wind was dead ahead. At noon we were 
only a hundred miles from the North American coast, some- 




A HEAVY GALE. 509 



where off Florida, and about 1,700 miles from Jamaica. 
Yesterday we only advanced 40 miles on our course, though 
we sailed 143. About two o'clock we saw a fine American 
barquantine coming up from one of the ports on the main-land. 
She looked beautiful, under full sail, as we crossed her bows, 
and exchanged salutations by flags. The weather continued 
favourable, with occasional passing showers and squalls, the 
effects of which were occasionally very fine. 

Tuesday, November 27th. — About 1 .30 a.m. I was aroused by 
a considerable noise on deck, which I found arose from the fact 
of the wind having at last shifted and come fresh and fair. 
The order to cease steaming was given, and all sails but the 
mainsail were rapidly set. 

At 3.45 a.m. the engines were stopped, and by 4. 15 we were 
bowling along under canvas, with a heavy sea and a long 
swell from the S.E. By 7 it was blowing stiff, and we housed 
top-masts, and took two reefs in mizen-sail. At 8 the wind 
had increased to a hard gale ; and we had two reefs down in 
fore and main-sails. At 9 it had become a real heavy 
gale — a regular ' Norther,' as we then thought it. Stay- 
sail, standing-jib, and mizen were quickly stowed, and we 
were hove-to, 379 miles from Bermuda. The thermometer 
stood at 72 ; and yet such was the force of the wind that 
the air felt quite chilly — a very different state of things to 
that which existed when I went on deck at five o'clock this 
morning. 

The barometer was at 39*82 ; and though it rose and fell 
at intervals, it remained comparatively steady throughout the 
day. After much careful observation of the gradual shifts of 
wind, as hour after hour passed, Tom reluctantly came to the 
conclusion that it was not so much a Norther, which we were 
encountering as a very heavy circular storm — a kind, of 
cyclone in fact. It is seldom, however, that these storms are 
so violent in the temperate regions of the broad Atlantic, as 

Y Y 



37o THE LAW OF STORMS. 



in the tropics, or in the narrow confines of the Caribbean Sea. 
In the region of the West Indies, pent up in a comparatively 
small space, the vortex is smaller, and the tempest expends 
all its fury on perhaps an area of a hundred square miles 
only, instead of spreading out and covering the vast surface 
of the ocean. In mid-ocean one fringe of the storm may be 
devastating the shores of America, while the other is com- 
mitting its ravages on the shores of our own little Islands. 
In our case it was blowing quite hard enough ; and as the 
wind was ever increasing in force, it w r as becoming a very 
serious matter, and most important to keep our little vessel 
as far away from the centre of the hurly-burly as possible. 
Here came in to good advantage Tom's knowledge of the 
law of storms. Nor can I go further without expressing 
the deep sense of gratitude that every mariner, and all 
those whose business or pleasure leads them to go down 
to the sea in ships, must feel towards those intelligent 
and scientific men who have spent their lives in solving 
this knotty meteorological problem, and in laying down 
a few simple rules, easily comprehensible to the meanest 
intellect. 

The chief points to be remembered are briefly these : — 
If you are caught in a circular storm, you face the wind 
and have the centre of the storm at right-angles to the point 
from which the wind is blowing : — that is to say, eight points 
of the compass on your right. The centre of disturbance 
being known, you have only to shape your course accordingly, 
and steer so as to get slowly to the edge of the storm, which 
is also passing over you. I may add that in the northern 
hemisphere, out of the tropics, the general movement is hi a 
north-easterly direction. This is all that is absolutely neces- 
sary to bear in mind in order to avoid the most immediate 
danger. Of course, like almost all useful subjects, the more 
you know about it the better ; and I have asked Tom to write 






RE VOL VI NG S TO RMS. 



37 1 



a more scientific and elaborate account, which I hope will be 
easily understood with the assistance of the accompanying 
diagram : — 




E 



' Revolving storms in both hemispheres obey an ascer- 
tained law. They revolve in a direction contrary to the 
apparent courses of the sun, and in north latitudes therefore 
revolve from right to left. Besides the circular motion 
around the centre, the centre itself has a progressive move- 
ment. In north latitude, within the tropics, this movement is 
to the westward, on the limits of the tropics to the northward, 
and in the temperate zone towards the north-east. The space 
over which these circular storms extend varies from twenty or 
thirty to some hundreds of miles ; and they expand and lose 
something of their violence as they advance into the higher 
latitudes. The rule for ascertaining the position of the vortex 
is simple. Look to the wind's eye ; set its bearing by com- 
pass ; take the eighth point to the right ; and that will be the 



37? WATCHING WIND AND WEATHER. 



bearing of the centre of the storm in north latitude. By 
observing the different bearings of the centre as the wind 
shifts, the track of the storm can readily be traced, and the 
ship can be scudded or hove-to accordingly. Applying these 
rules to the storm with which we have been contending, we 
had the centre bearing south-east when the storm commenced. 
As the wind veered, so the bearing of the centre was changed 
from south-east to north-east. The centre was revolving from 
the south-west to the north-east, and we were therefore in the 
left-hand semicircle. 

* During the winter months, most of the gales which pass 
along the coast of North America are revolving gales. These 
gales, by revolving as extended whirlwinds, produce a nor- 
therly wind between Bermuda and the American continent, 
and southerly and south-easterly winds far out in the 
Atlantic. 

' The accompanying diagram roughly illustrates the phe- 
nomena of the recent gale as it advanced from the south-west 
to the north-east.' 

In the height of the storm we made sometimes about two 
knots ; but we were virtually hove-to, with top-masts housed, 
everything battened down, canvas tightly lashed over all doors 
and skylights, and openings of every kind, boats and spare 
spars covered with canvas and firmly secured to the deck. 
When all this was done there was nothing for it but to watch 
the wind and weather, and hope and pray for the best ; check 
the steering carefully, and perpetually think of some little thing 
or another, which would if possible make certainty more sure, 
and improve our chance of ultimate safety. The mizen try- 
sail was ready for setting, and every rope and lashing was 
tried, to make sure that all was fast. 

It was very dark and not very cheery down below, as may 
be imagined, though wonderfully comfortable, considering 
how the wind was roaring and the waves raging. Not a drop 



A SUDDEN LURCH. 



373 



of water came into the cabins, nor was there a single leak 
anywhere in the decks ; which fact is, I think, very remark- 
able, considering that the 'Sunbeam' has been in hot 
climates without intermission for two years. In the course 
of the afternoon I crawled up on deck, and, to my great 
astonishment, found that it was equally free from water, 
except in a few spots where the sea just ran up the channels 
or through the hawse pipes, or where some of the waves had 
caught the rigging and a little spoondrift had come on board, 
or perhaps a less experienced hand at the helm had let the 




TOPMASTS HOUSED 



vessel broach-to slightly. I can assure you that steering is no 
easy matter on a day like this, and that it requires the utmost 
vigilance, judgment, and attention — particularly when the 
rudder happens to be somewhat shaky, as was the case with 
ours. In one of the sudden lurches, all the watch — who were 
engaged in taking another reef in the mainsail — were suddenly 
and violently flung from one side of the deck to the other. 
They were all considerably bruised, and one poor man was 
really much injured, his wrist being badly sprained. It was 
a work of great difficulty to move about at all ; but, well 
enveloped in mackintoshes, and securely fixed to a seat, it 



374 A GALLANT LITTL^E CRAFT. 



was terribly grand, though at the same time almost awful, 
to see the huge tops of the waves, rising high above our heads, 
and threatening every moment to engulf us : but just when 
that result seemed inevitable, our gallant little craft would 
give a fearful lurch to leeward, presenting a high bold side to 
the wave, and then rise up on the top of the next wave, 
shaking the spray from her rigging and sides like a Nereid 
rising from her bath. Oh, she is a darling ! perfect in her 
shape and in her ways ; and she lay-to all through this 
fearful day, without shipping a drop of green water. ' Bless 
you, ma'am,' said one of the old hands, to whom I made a 
remark as he passed, ' why she's that sense, she'd lay herself 
to, the beauty, if you give her a chance ! ' 

It can hardly be imagined how one comes to love a vessel 
that behaves so splendidly as does the * Sunbeam ' in an 
emergency such as this ; meeting each threatening wave 
gallantly with her graceful bow, and riding bravely over it 
like a cork, tossed about on the ' wild sea of circumstance,' 
but never overwhelmed by it. I know nothing that makes 
one feel one's own littleness ' and the greatness of the Creator 
so much as a big storm at sea. Man is so utterly powerless 
against it. All his most cunning contrivances and carefully 
conceived precautions (though of course too many cannot be 
taken) are so absolutely futile if the crash does come ; for 
there are some circumstances in which no knowledge of 
science or ability of command could save the mariner, bravely 
as he might struggle to do his very best. In an emergency 
like the present there is nothing to be done but to watch and 
pray. 

Though the sea looked so wild and grand, it was not so 
vicious as I have seen it in a much less violent commotion. 
I fancy that the very force and fury of the wind kept down the 
waves in a certain measure, and prevented them from break- 
ing so angrily as they might otherwise have done. For- 



THE BEAUTY? 375 



tunately the motion of our good little vessel, lying-to, was 
comparatively easy ; and down below seemed like a haven of 
rest, where it was impossible to imagine the turmoil of the 
elements that was going on above. Most of the party are 
good sailors, and have capital spirits. Only three of us were 
ill, and nobody was frightened. In fact scarcely anyone knew 
what was going on until it was all over ; and except on deck 
there was really nothing alarming to be seen. The motion of 




'THE BEAUTY' 



the vessel was such as would have been experienced in an 
ordinary rough sea, with the addition of fearful lurches at 
comparatively rare intervals. Not a drop of water came 
below ; and everything being properly secured, there were 
none of those sudden and startling crashes which add so much 
to the terrors of a storm at sea ; especially to the minds of 
inexperienced people. It is astonishing how even a very 
small quantity of water slopping about on the floor, a con- 



376 MINOR DISCOMFORTS. 



tinual dripping from overhead, a damp berth, and a more or 
less considerable destruction of crockery, increase the fury 
and importance of the gale in the imagination of those who 
know nothing at all about it ; although, as a matter of fact, 
such accidents only add considerably to the general misery 
and discomfort, and may to a great extent be avoided by 
prudent precautions. It is, as a rule, quite impossible to 
adopt any remedies, or to do much to ameliorate circum- 
stances, after the storm has fairly commenced. As in the 
parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins, the lamps should be 
filled with oil and trimmed beforehand. Everything of im- 
portance should be arranged where it can readily be found 
in a moment of emergency, so that it may not suddenly 
become necessary to search for what is urgently required in a 
large cupboard up to windward, the contents of which, even if 
it can be opened at all, will infallibly be projected on to your 
head and over the floor, while the cupboard cannot be closed 
again until the vessel goes on the other tack. 

Although we had thus far escaped any serious casualties, 
lunch and dinner to-day in the saloon were accompanied by a 
series of small catastrophes. The stewards were too ambi- 
tious ; and in their zeal and anxiety to please, tried to behave 
as though the weather were normal, instead of very abnormal. 
All the carpets had been taken up before we left Nassau, to 
avoid the possibility of their being wetted by the water coming 
through the skylights, which always gives them a disagreeable 
odour. It is, moreover, impossible to dry them again properly 
while at sea ; and a good thick Axminster carpet, . well satu- 
rated, is converted into something very like an unpleasant 
morass. Bare boards, on the other hand, have the disadvan- 
tage of being very slippery in a gale of wind, as the poor 
stewards found to their cost to-day ; for they slid about in 
every direction, across the saloon, despite all efforts to main- 
tain their equilibrium. Then one of the big terrestrial globes 



FLIGHT OF S TE WA RDS. 



377 



apparently disapproving of the manner in which it was 
being treated by the ocean, 'carried away,' and went 
bounding about the floor ; while the swing-tables, which 
had for some time been tried severely, were now tested to 
the utmost limits of their capacity for movement. At dinner 
matters were even worse. How the stewards managed to 
serve the meal at all — much less how it was cooked — I can 
scarcely imagine. The result reflected great credit 

upon all par- f- "-. ties concerned ; for, accord- 

ing to all reports, it was excel- 

lent, the in- ^^X^^fc^ ^Ilill^ cidental difficul- 

ties being ^^a^^^^ '^\ promptly 

met #w?iP'»f^^''/r ^ ^ 1 ^\ and 




with 

termi - 

best of 

happen. I 

the halcyon 

so much, if it 



overcome 
admirable de- 
nation to make the 
everything that mig 
think that we should not enjoy 
days of a voyage like this nearly 
were not for the occasional storm and tempest, the contrast 
of the rough with the smooth. ' 

When I went on deck, or rather peeped through a chink 
in the companion, just before we were absolutely shut down 
for the night, all looked sombre and dreary, not a star to 
be seen, nothing but gloomy and impenetrable darkness : — 
black sky, black clouds, and black sea, the water being only 

z z 



378 A TERRIBLE NIGHT. 



discernible, after long peering into the gloom, by the aid 
of the fitful light thrown from the crest of a wave, as it 
broke and disturbed some myriads of luminous marine 
animals, driven hither and thither by its ever restless motion. 
As a rule, this light is regarded as a beautiful phenomenon 
of nature ; but now ! — was it imagination, or did it really 
assume a lurid and angry aspect, as it threw a transient 
gleam upon the scene ? Taking one lingering last look round 
before I went below, I could not help wondering, with a 
feeling of awe, unmixed with fear, whether it would please 
a merciful Providence to bring us safety to the light of an- 
other day, or whether before morning, the one vast problem 
that, more than any other, concerns all men, the great 
mystery of life and death, time and eternity, would be solved 
— for us at least. 

Wednesday, November 28th. — The morning broke better 
than might have been expected, after a terrible night ; and 
we began to hope that things were mending. At 7 a.m. a 
double-reefed topsail was set. At 8 a reefed mizen-trysail. 
Soon afterwards some of the battens and canvas coverings on 
the lee-side were removed, in order to allow us a little light, 
which was a great comfort, though the amount of air admitted 
was still unpleasantly infinitesimal - in quantity. The lee- 
doors of the fore and after-companions were also left slightly 
open at the top ; and as not a single door was closed below, 
the refreshing current rushed through the yacht as through 
a funnel ; the occupants of the various cabins doing their best, 
by various clever devices, to direct some of this fresh 
oxygen into what for some little time past had been their 
somewhat ill- ventilated apartments. From nine till eleven 
o'clock, although the sea did not abate, the general aspect 
of affairs was much brighter. The sun tried to come out from 
behind its veil of clouds, thus enabling Tom to take an obser- 
vation and to ascertain, approximately, our position. Then 



A HEAVY SQUALL. 379 



came a very heavy squall — perhaps one of the heaviest we had 
experienced ; after which the gale went on steadily increasing 
again till sunset. 

At noon we had come thirty-five miles through the water 
since we were hove-to, and were in lat. 31.47 N., long 71.4 W. 
At 3 p.m. we saw a large barque hove-to on the starboard 
tack, and at five another barque passed astern of us, steering 
to the southward under her main-royal only. 

Dinner was apparently an impossibility ; but the inci- 
dental difficulties were overcome with great ingenuity and 
determination, and it appeared to be a very merry feast, in 
spite of all adverse circumstances. The state of my health 
unfortunately did not permit me to join the festive scene (one 
could hardly refer to it as * the dinner table,' since the guests 
all sat in a straight row on the floor, with their backs against 
the side of the vessel, where they could not easily be upset) ; 
but from the sounds of joyous laughter that I heard borne, 
not exactly on the gentle evening breeze, but on the funnel- 
like draught through the engine-room passage, I inferred that 
they were all thoroughly enjoying themselves at what was not 
unjustifiably described by one of the party as a ' flooricultural ' 
entertainment. Perhaps the following little narrative, which 
was afterwards communicated to me, and which amused me 
considerably at the time, may not be without interest : 
' Earlier in the day, the perpetual rolling and tossing of the 
vessel had warned us that in all probability the maximum 
clinometrical angle of the swing-table would ere long be 
reached ; and our party, now unfortunately reduced to some- 
what exiguous proportions, had scarcely, with some little 
difficulty, and by dint of much judicious tacking in the direc- 
tion of their respective chairs, succeeded in placing themselves 
at the table, when a sudden roll almost capsized the soup into 
their laps, and deposited various spoons, forks, &c. on the 
floor. These were replaced ; the soup was finished ; and the 



380 A VIOLENT LURCH. 



guests were preparing to quaff the joyous vintage of Champagne, 
when the cup was literally dashed from their lips by a violent 
lurch, which sent the table swinging wildly to its extreme 
limit, until it stopped with a sudden jerk, sending nearly 
everything upon it on to the floor. A general game of clutch 
and claw, demanded by the exigencies of the moment, was 
promptly played with considerable success ; and though every- 
one felt for the moment the necessity of an extra pair of hands 
in order to grapple satisfactorily with the difficulties of the 
situation, the work of salvage was so far accomplished that 
only three or four glasses and a plate or two came to utter 
grief. 

' It being undesirable that any more glasses should be 
broken, or any more stewards bowled over, it was decided to 
continue the dinner in somewhat different fashion. We ac- 
cordingly all retired to different corners of the saloon, where, 
some seated on the floor, some on sofas, and some standing, 
we did what justice we could to the succession of good things, 
which, notwithstanding the gale, continued to arrive from the 
galley. Horns were substituted for glasses, but though pos- 
sessing the advantage of greater capacity, they showed them- 
selves equally ready to upset at every possible opportunity. 
They had to be coaxed into good behaviour by being propped 
up comfortably with sofa-cushions ; Jbut I think those of our 
party did best who boldly faced the difficulty by placing the 
horns in the breast-pocket of their coats Unfortunately, this 
resource was denied to the ladies, who, however, were not less 
fertile in expedients of equal ingenuity. Perhaps the most 
comical point in the amusing string of incidents was to be 
found in the absurd angles of inclination assumed by the 
stewards, whose bodies bent and swayed in every possible 
direction, in the effort to combine the almost hopeless en- 
deavour to offer dishes gracefully at arms' length, with the 
effort to preserve something like equilibrium. For the 



ANOTHER BAD DAY. 38 r 

moment, doubtless, they envied the pet-monkey the possession 
of a prehensile tail, which would have been invaluable. To 
their praise be it recorded, they succeeded in maintaining 
a decorous gravity, which was far more than we could accom- 
plish. Continuous shouts of laughter, and strings of jokes — 
more or less feeble— served to show that even a dinner in a 
cyclone in the North Atlantic has its comic side.' 

Thursday, November 2gth. — Another bad day ; wind as 
strong as ever. Still, somehow or other, at noon we found 
that we had sailed 82 miles through the water, and were 
in lat. 31.35 W., long. 70.57 W., only 310 miles from 
Bermuda. 

We are all trying to get gradually accustomed to the 
present state of things ; but there is not a great deal to say 
about it from hour to hour, or day to day. I wonder how 
much longer it will last. Even a storm becomes mono- 
tonous after a day or two, notwithstanding the grandeur and 
sublimity of its effects, and the touch of excitement added by 
a good deal more than a mere suspicion of danger. The 
waves were really magnificent to-day, rolling past, mountains 
high, their tops reflecting the most exquisite green tints, as 
they caught an occasional stray ray of sunlight before break- 
ing. In the morning we saw a brigantine hove to on the 
starboard tack, under her foretopsail. In the afternoon we 
had heavy squalls and constant showers. Towards sunset we 
took a third reef in the mainsail. 

At night the sea looked more weird and uncanny than 
ever, as if it had been suddenly frozen in the midst of all its 
uproar and agitation. I do not know in the least the cause 
of this extraordinary appearance, unless it were the poor pale 
watery moon trying vainly to struggle through her extra thick 
mantle of stormy clouds. Whatever may have been its reason, 
the scene was most ghastly ; and it seemed quite natural to 
expect to behold some poor tempest-tossed ship, denuded of 



3 82 



ANOTHER SQUALL. 



sails and masts, drift swiftly past, clasped in the cold deadly 
grip of the hard and angry-looking billows, which looked 
eager to deal destruction, doom, and death to everything on 
the surface of the waters. 

Friday, November 30th. — Another awful night, with 

heavy squalls of wind and 
rain and pitchy 
darkness : 
the most 
unearth- 
ly yell - 
ly ings and 
shriek - 
ings be- 
§1 ing au- 
| dible in 

the rig- 
ging, as 
the cord- 
age wore 
and chafed 
and strain- 
ed. Towards 
8 a. m. the 
weather im- 




SQUALL— WATEH OX DECK 



proved, and we 
were able to shake out some reefs and to set the standing 
jib. 

In the course of the morning there was a heavy squall, 
followed by a tremendous crash, and the whole of the head- 
sails seemed to have come to grief. It was found that the 
whiskers of the jibboom had carried away, taking many 
other things with them. Several of the men went out on the 
bowsprit to clear away the wreckage and to try to repair 



A TREMENDOUS CRASH. 



383 



damages ; one of whom was nearly lost overboard, the rope 
on which he was standing giving way beneath his feet just as 
the ' Sunbeam ' took it into her head to dip her nose more 
deeply than usual into the sea. He clung on by his hands ; 
but as the yacht made three heavy plunges in quick succession, 
he was completely dragged under water and lost to sight each 
time. His 

comrades „ -„,.... s =, 

gave him 
up for 
lost ; but 
waited in 
the chains 
for what 
appeared 
several 
minutes - 
though, 
perhaps, 
not more 
than a 
few se- 
conds — 
when, to 
the joy 
and relief 

of all, he reappeared 
above the surface of the 
waves. Several strong 

arms were ready to seize him and to pull him on board, 
bruised, battered, and almost insensible from the shock and 
the immersion, but thankful for his merciful preservation 
from the very jaws of death. It must have been a terrible 
sensation. I asked him about it afterwards ; and he told me 




jf. 



BRADIKG IX JEOPARDY 



3&r A NARROW ESCAPE. 

that he was stunned for a momeLt, but that he did not feel so 
very frightened when he recovered and found himself in the 
water, as he had been overboard more than once before, and 
was a strong swimmer ; and he knew his friends would be on 
the look-out for him. All he feared was that he might 
receive a blow on the head from the dolphin-striker as the 
vessel plunged, or that the forefoot of the yacht might cut 
him in two as he rose to the surface. His ribs were a good 
deal bruised and his hands lacerated ; but under the skilful 
care of Dr. Hudson he was fit for work again in a couple of 
days. Another of the men had sprained his wrist severely 
a few days previously, and, as I have already mentioned, we 
have lost Baulf ; so that altogether we are very short-handed 
for such storms as we have encountered, one watch not being 
sufficient to carry out any important evolution. This is 
rather hard on all concerned, as they do not get their proper 
quantity of undisturbed sleep. Tom, I need scarcely say, 
works ' like a nigger,' and gives himself no rest, day or night ; 
in spite of which, and of his grave anxiety, he keeps re- 
markably well ; although he is so excessively drowsy at times 
that he drops off to sleep at the most unexpected moments. 
The other day he had a merciful escape from a' serious 
accident. He fell asleep at the mast-head, where he spends 
a great deal of his time ; and if it had not been that Kindred 
wanted to ask him a question about some proposed change 
in our course, and, wondering why he did not come down, 
went up to speak to him, he would in all human probability 
have fallen down on to the deck or overboard. ' It makes 
one's blood run cold to think of it. 

At noon we had sailed or drifted forty-six miles through 
the water, were 270 miles from Bermuda, and in lat. 31.19 
N., long. 70.2 W. At 3 p.m. the longitude by chronometer 
was 69.47 W. Directly after Tom had worked this out, and 
while he and I were still discussing our position, a terrible 



AFTER-LEECH OF MAINSAIL BURST. 



385 



squall struck us suddenly, scarcely any warning having been 
given of its approach. Everything of the very little there was 
to let go was sent down by the run ; but still we felt a tre- 
mendous lurch to leeward, and the yacht seemed almost as if 
she were struck from above and beaten down into the sea. 
I never experienced such a sensation before. Even in my 

secure little sheltered 
Ler the force of 
the wind seemed 
to take, my 
breath away, 
and to make 
me feel as 
if I should 
be driven 
through 
the deck. 
The after- 
leech of the 
mainsail burst 
with a report like a 
cannon, and then 
split across with fur- 
ther reports and deto- 
nations, as the wind rent 
through cloth after cloth 
with a noise \ ^\ \ like very heavy sharp- 

shooting. The ^- : shackle of the standing-jib-stay 

was carried away, and came down with a crash ; 

and the deck was so hampered with rigging and canvas, and 
there was such .a flapping of sails, rattling of blocks, knocking 
of ropes, howling of the tempest, hissing of rain, and roaring 
of the sea, that for the next few moments nobody quite real- 
ised or knew exactly what had happened. It was a mauvais 

3 a 




THE GALE OVER. 



quart-d'heure altogether ; but the rush of the squall was soon 
over ; we bore away, and in an hour or two the most serious 
part of. the damage had been repaired, and a main-trysail 
had been set to replace the mainsail. The weather continued 
much the same throughout the rest of the day, with heavy 
squalls and a nasty rolling swell from the north-east. 

About 10 p.m. the wind moderated a little, and we were 
able to shake a reef out of fore-sail and mizen, and to set 
a reefed fore-stay-sail. 

Saturday, December 1st. — At 3 a.m. the weather had really 
improved, and we were able to shake the reefs out of the mizen. 
At 6.40 we saw the sun rise out of the sea, for the first time 
for many days past ; and a gorgeous sight it was. How 
thankful we felt to behold it, looking bright and beautiful, once 
more ; the sea meanwhile rapidly going down, the wind 
greatly diminishing in force, and everything betokening that 
the gale was over ! 

For the last few days it has been necessary to pay the 
greatest care and attention to the steering of the yacht, espe- 
cially in consideration of the somewhat damaged state of the 
rudder-head. None but the oldest and most experienced hands 
have been allowed to take the wheel ; an arrangement which, 
although it has of course entailed extra work upon them, has 
been a stern necessity. The slightest want of attention on the 
part of the helmsman would probably have caused the yacht 
to broach-to, sending a great sea over her, which would have 
washed about on deck, found its way down the companion, 
swamped the cabins, and made us generally miserable ; while 
a not much greater amount of inexperience or indecision would 
simply have led to the vessel being pooped, with the possible 
result of her disappearing for ever beneath the stormy surges 
of the Atlantic. One might verily believe that the saucy little 
water- witch knows who is steering her, almost as well as a 
horse knows its rider ; and that when she thinks the man at 



A BRIGHTER SKY. 387 



the wheel is not paying sufficient attention to his business 
and to her pretty little self, she says to herself, ' Well, I have 
done my best to take care of you and keep you dry, but if 
you won't look after me and your duty too, and will go on 
staring up at the sky, or at what people are doing on deck, 
or thinking about your sweetheart, or wife, or somebody else 
at home, I will just show you what I can do ; ' and down she 
goes, with her nose into the sea, burying herself in the top 
of the waves, and drenching everybody forward of the fore^ 
mast with spray. I fancy, from the somewhat remonstrant 
and angry looks which I occasionally see cast at Mr. So-and- 
So, the incompetent or careless helmsman, that he ' hears of 
it again,' if his mates consider he has unduly and without any 
necessity exposed them to the risk of getting wet jackets. 

I can scarcely describe how the spirits of all on board rose 
with the brightness of the sky, the comparative smoothness of 
the sea, and the revivifying heat of the sun's rays. Every- 
body, even the invalids, found their way on deck in the morn- 
ing, creeping and crawling about, and gradually 'pulling 
themselves together ' and becoming quite bright and lively by 
the afternoon. The crew were busily engaged in repairing 
the mainsail, and generally in making good the damages of 
the last few days. There was still a heavy swell running; 
and the sea was sufficiently rough to cause one to notice how 
important are the. duties of the steersman, showers of spray 
being sent over the deck more than once by the want of skill 
or by the negligence of some of the less experienced hands. 
Each of the seamen was allowed to take his turn at the wheel, 
now that the weather was finer ; and, down in my cabin even, 
I could almost tell who was steering, so great is the difference 
that a little caje and experience make in the behaviour of a 
vessel, especially in that of such a handy and clever craft as 
the ' Sunbeam,' susceptible to the least touch of the rudder. 

I do not believe that the ship is yet on the stocks that 



388 



REWARD OF GOOD BEHAVIOUR. 



"would lay-to as she has done during the last few days. 1 
am sure she is a true-hearted woman in every sense of the 
word, thoroughly to be trusted in an emergency, but at the 
same time with a slight touch of frivolity in her nature ; and 
of course dearly loving a little bit of finery, like the rest of us. 
I mean, if I have my way, directly we get into port, to reward 
her good behaviour by giving her the dandiest dress that 
money can procure in the islands of the ' still vexed Bermoo- 
thes.' A robe of snowy white, with a brilliant golden girdle 
round her graceful bow, her slender waist, and her gently 
swelling stern, to show- off her exquisite proportions to the 
fullest and greatest advantage, and make her outshine in 
beauty everything that she meets. 





Where the remote Bermudas ride, 
In the ocean's bosom unespied, 
From a small boat that rowed along 
The listening winds received this song : — 
' What should we do but sing his praise, 
That led us through the watery maze, 
Unto an isle so long unknown, 
And yet far kinder than our own ? ' 

"INDEED called us at 4 a.m. and in- 
formed us that no change had taken 
place in the weather since nightfall, and 
that we were still going nine knots, on the 
same course. At 4.30, he came down once 
more, to say that a light was visible right 
ahead, from the fore-yard. Tom told him to keep the same 
course, while he dressed himself speedily and went on deck. 



39° BERMUDA. 



In a few minutes he came down to fetch me, in order to show 
me, with considerable, and I think pardonable, pride, the 
light, almost straight ahead, but a little on our port bow. 
Both our hearts were filled with thankfulness at the sight 
of the welcome beacon, and at the knowledge that we were at 
length in sight of a harbour. The last ten days and nights 
have been full of anxiety ; and ' many a time and oft ' I have 
wondered if we should be spared to see lights and land again. 
Orders were at once given for fires to be lighted, and at 6.30 
a.m. -we commenced steaming. At seven we took a pilot on 
board. 

The aspect of Bermuda from the sea is charming ; and as 
we steamed as close to Gibbs' Hill — the friendly light on 
which we had made with so much accuracy, and with such 
sentiments of pleasure, early this morning — as safety would 
permit, the vista of rock and reef, rising from a pale green 
sea, divided by a long line of creamy surf from another sea, 
of the deepest and clearest sapphire-blue, was extremely fine. 
Off St. David's Light we met a corvette, showing her number, 
which we took for that of the ' Flamingo.' A closer and more 
careful examination through the glass showed that the signal 
was really G.B.S.P., and that she was the ' Griffin,' a small 
screw gun-vessel carrying three guns. The pilot told us that 
she had been detained by the recent hurricane, and was bound 
for Hayti. Not long afterwards we met the old ' Foam,' a 
screw gun-boat carrying four guns. She was the first gun- 
boat in which Tom embarked with his Boyal Naval Artillery 
Volunteers, in 1878, at Sheerness. This will explain why I 
was so much interested to meet her again. I had never seen 
her from that day to this, and had always thought of her 
somewhat in the light of a cradle to the real cruising volunteer 
movement. 

The pilot informed us that the departure of the 'Foam' 
from Bermuda had also been postponed by the same hurri- 




■■/K 



o J* tJr* .■'.. «■ K C»**/» .'• .»•• »„•«.• J, -P^ Casfle :^7_.? . 



'^/U 

,.-•' 




IVrecfc 

LongBar \V, Ba T 



BERMUDA ISLANDS 




65' Longitacle West 50' from Greenwich 45' 



New York: Henry Holt A Co. 



E3v!-\\ r cllev 



HAMILTON. 391 



cane which we had experienced — the most violent that had 
been known here for years, and which, besides doing other 
serious damage, had driven the flag-ship ' Northampton ' 
aground, where she still remains. This is indeed a terrible 
calamity, and one which, from the pilot's account, seems to 
have filled all hearts with sorrow. 

Before proceeding further with the account of our visit to 
the Bermudas, a few words of general description may per- 
haps be given. The distance of the group from England is 
2858; from New York, 677; Halifax, 730; and Jamaica, 
1 103 miles. The nearest land, Cape Hatteras, in North 
Carolina, is distant 580 miles. The islands are about 100 
in number, of which fifteen or sixteen only are inhabited : 



FORT ST. GEORGE 



their total area being 41 square miles. The surface, which is 
composed of shelly coralline rock, is mostly low. The greatest 
care is necessary in approaching the Bermudas, or Somers' 
Islands ; especially on account of the barrier-reefs by which 
the group is surrounded, and which form a strong natural 
defence. The only approach to the harbour of Hamilton, the 
capital of the islands, is from the eastward, by way of St. 
George's Channel and the Narrows. Among the islands there 
are several good anchorages, which afford shelter from the 
severe gales of winter. In fact, the entire group, extending 
in the form of a crescent for about twentv miles, from north- 



392 HAMILTON SOUND. 

east to south-west, and protected to the northward by a 
barrier-reef, forms one of the finest havens in the world. The 
principal islands are Bermuda, St. George, Somerset, St. 
David, Boaz, and Ireland. On the first named is situated 
the town of Hamilton; on St. George — which, like Ireland, 
is strongly fortified — is the ancient capital, of the same 
name ; and on Boaz are the well-known convict-prisons. The 
climate is mild and very healthy, though rather too damp and 
relaxing to suit all constitutions. The chief productions are 
cotton, timber, arrowroot, cocoa, potatoes, and onions ; 
although tropical and other fruits are also raised in abund- 
ance. The islands were first discovered by Bermudez, a 
Spaniard, in 1527. Sir George Somers was wrecked here in 
1609, and the group was soon afterwards colonised from 
England and from Virginia. 

We must have steamed sixty miles after we took our pilot 
on board, before we dropped anchor in Hamilton Sound ; and 
we were indeed fortunate in having such a lovely morning on 
which to see the fine and varied views presented by these 
islands, which, though they are called by different names, are 
now nearly all connected by means of causeways. Steaming 
along the south coast in an easterly direction, we passed 
Hungry Bay, and could see the house-tops and churches of 
Hamilton, over the land, picturesquely and snugly, but some- 
what provokingly, ensconced on the other side of the island. 
Then came Prospect Hill, with its long line of spacious 
barracks ; next, Newton Bay, very near the Little Sound ; then 
the entrance to Castle Harbour, and St. David's Island and 
Head, on which another fine lighthouse, 208 feet above the 
sea-level, has been erected by the dinar d Company. Soon 
afterwards we went through the Narrows — and very narrow 
and intricate they seemed to be — and, having passed St. 
Catherine's Point, the north-eastern extremity of St. George's 
Island, we altered our course and steered to the westward. 



THE FLAG-SHIP 'NORTHAMPTON: 393 

At St. George's there appeared to be a good harbour, and' 
quite a large town, including a great many churches and 
barracks, and several formidable-looking forts. The prospect 
changed constantly in character, and was always pretty, as 
we steamed rapidly along on the surface of a perfectly smooth 
sea of azure, infinitely refreshing to the eye. Oh ! what a 
luxury it was, after all the tossing and tumbling, amid the 
angry black waves, with white curling tops, by which we had 
been buffeted ! We were, of course, all anxiety to see the 
j)Oor flag-ship 'Northampton,' which had been driven ashore 
by the cyclone ; and soon we came in view of her, hard and 
fast aground, alas ! in Grassy Bay, just off Ireland Island, 
looking dismantled and melancholy, almost like a wreck, with 
all her top-masts and yards and spare gear sent down, from 
aloft. She was surrounded . by quite a flotilla of lighters and 
small boats, engaged in taking all the heavy things off her as 
fast as possible, so as to diminish her draught of water ; 
while every available steamer and tug was trying with might 
and mam to release her from her unpleasant position. It 
was a case, not of ' all the king's horses and all the king's 
men,' being quite unable to perform their Herculean labour, 
but of all the Queen's ships and all the Queen's men (and 
a Queen's grandson to boot ; for Prince George of Wales 
was on board the ' Canada ') trying to pull the good ship off 
again. I fear they have a desperately hard task before them ; 
for she went aground on the top of the very highest tide 
ever experienced here. There is as a rule not much tide 
among the Bermuda Islands; but the recent 'hurricane,' as 
they here call it, seems to have done all sorts of abnormal 
things ; among others to have driven four more feet of water 
into the Sounds and harbour than had been remarked on any 
previous occasion. 

While we were watching these operations, a six-oared boat 
came alongside, bringing the Officer of Health, who was mos: 

3B 



394 QUARANTINE. 

minute in all his inquiries and cross-questionings as to the 
sanitary condition of every hidividual on board. I could not 
help thinking that his investigations were being carried to a 
preposterous extent at last ; and, as a gentle hint, caused ' Sir 



THE HEALTH BOAT 



Eoger ' and ' Waif ' to be paraded for inspection. I had also 
serious thoughts of producing the opossum and the parrots 
and canaries ; only I feared that the official might think that 
some of the latter were touched with yellow fever ; and the 
indulgence of my whim might therefore have got us into 
trouble. It seemed as though the Health Officer and Dr. 
Hudson would never have finished their confabulations ; and 
I began at last to fancy that curiosity must have something 
to do with the numerous inquiries made by the former ; but 
I heard afterwards that the authorities had unfortunately 
allowed a ship with several cases of ' Dengue,' or ' Breakbone 
fever ' on board to pass into the harbour, without discovering 
her condition ; and that they had been extra careful ever 
since. No sooner was the Officer satisfied, and our quarantine 
flag had been hauled down, than several men-of-war's boats, 
which had been hanging about, came alongside, from one of 
which stepped on board our old friend Captain Victor Mon- 
tagu, whom it was a real pleasure to see again, though he 
was looking worn and worried, like all the other officers here, 
about this unhajppy flag-ship business. It is said that 
Admiral Commerell has never left the bridge of the ' North- 



AMONG REEFS AND SHOALS. 



395 



ampton ' since the accident occurred. He has also been 
anxious about the 'Fantome,' which was considerably over- 
due from Port-au-Prince, and of which nothing had been 
heard since her departure from that port. Having fortunately 
happened to see her at daybreak on the morning of November 
13, at Port Eoyal, just as she arrived from Hayti, and as 
we were leaving for Ocho Bios, we were able to relieve much 
anxiety on the subject, and a signal was at once made to 
convey the good news of the ship's safety. 

The pilot distinctly disapproved of our remaining long 
among the reefs and shoals by which we were surrounded : the 
navigation being rendered still more difficult than usual at 
the present moment by the numerous hawsers and chains 
which are out in every direction, and by the lighters, full of 
shot and shell, removed from the ' Northampton.' Captain 
Montagu seconded the pilot's advice, and returned to his own 




THE ' NORTHAMPTON ' AGROUND 



vessel, the ' Garnet,' while we proceeded on our way to 
Hamilton, through tortuous passages, between tiny islets and 



396 AT ANCHOR AT HAMILTON. 



rocks, which were in many cases disfigured by the hideous 
boards of enterprising tradesmen, stuck up in the most con- 
spicuous places, apparently with the deliberate purpose of 
spoiling the picturesqueness of the landscape. I really think 
that the Bermudian House of Assembly ought to pass a 
unanimous vote of censure, disapproving such acts of van- 
dalism, followed by an Act of the legislature to prevent their 
recurrence in future. Apart from the hideous business- 
placards the whole scene was very Norwegian in character. 
Save for the absence of the high snow-clad mountains in the 
background, it reminded me forcibly of one of the southern 
Scandinavian fiords, dotted with little islets, covered with firs 
of various sorts, principally the island-cedar. To say that it 
was practicable to throw a biscuit on shore in many of the 
straits we passed through would but imperfectly convey an 
idea of their narrowness. It seemed, more than once, as if 
the ' Sunbeam ' was likely to have her sides scraped by the 
rocks ; and although our paint was in so disreputable a state, 
after all the knocking-about which we have experienced, that a 
scratch or two more or less would not make any great dif- 
ference, the result might not be pleasant if the abrasion 
happened to penetrate more deeply. However, the pilot 
seemed to be quite devoid of apprehension on this score, and 
went boldly on at full speed, till we dropped anchor safely in 
the harbour of Hamilton at ten o'clock. 

The town is a nice clean little place, surrounded by pretty 
white villas, embosomed in green trees. Inglewood, the 
house which the Princess Louise and the Marquis of Lome 
occupied last year, at the head of the Sound Bocks, is a 
large and comfortable edifice, surrounded by a green veran- 
dah, situated in the middle of a large garden, which, in 
its turn, is encompassed by what, for Bermuda, is an 
extensive park. 

In the course of the day we had many visitors, including 



MOUNT LANGTON. 



397 



the Admiral's secretary and the aide-de-camp to the Governor, 
besides several old friends and acquaintances, whom we had 
' not expected to have the pleasure of meeting 
here. Later on we landed and proceeded to 
call upon General Gallwey, and Sir Edmund 
Commerell, both of whom live some distance 
from the town. It was a pleasant drive of 
about a mile to Mount Langton, the entrance 
to which, through a deep cutting between two 
high walls covered with purple bougainvillea, 



f 




398 CLARENCE EI ILL. 



and planted on either side with oranges, lemons, hibiscus, and 
mespilus, is singularly like that to the Palace of San Antonio, 
at Malta. The house itself looks cool and comfortable, and 
is surrounded by a broad green verandah, which has been 
sadly injured by the recent hurricane. From Mount Lang- 
ton there is a magnificent view of land and sea — principally 
the latter — on all sides. Attached to the Governor's resi- 
dence is a pleasant garden, with two lawn-tennis courts, 
and also a little farm, from which we were able once more 
to enjoy the luxury of some real milk. 

We next proceeded on another pretty drive of about a 
mile to Clarence Hill, passing on our way a church, many 
trim little cottages, much semi-tropical vegetation, and many 
beautiful coast scenes. Sir Edmund, who is the Commander- 
in-Chief on the North American and West Indies Station, was 
of course on board the ' Northampton ' ; but we found Lady 
Commerell and her two daughters at home, and paid them 
a long visit, watching the sunset and then the twilight fade 
over , Clarence Bay, with its rocks and pretty bathing-cove 
just below us, and the islands of St. George's and St. David's 
in the distance. The Misses Commerell told me that they 
had only returned from Halifax a few days since in the 
' Northampton,' and that they find a considerable difference 
between the climates of the two places. WTien they left Nova 
Scotia there were four feet of snow on the ground, and the 
temperature was 6o° lower than it is here ; a contrast which, 
I should think, must have been very trying, especially when 
it is remembered that this variation took place in the space 
of two or three days. 

It was pitch dark when we left Clarence Hill, and drove to 
the imposing-looking Hamilton Hotel, where the obliging 
manager and his civil attendants had promised to give us 
' a nice little hot dinner ' at six o'clock, although it was their 
' invariable custom only to serve meals at stated times.' But, 



THE HAMILTON HOTEL. 399 



alas ! we were doomed to disappointment ; for the ' nice little 
hot dinner ' consisted of some tepid and tough cutlets — made 
to appear tougher by having to be cut with the bluntest of 
silver knives - and some cold and greasy fried potatoes ; the 
only redeeming feature of the repast being excellent rolls 
and good salt butter. At seven o'clock some of the party 
went to the cathedral, where they heard a harmonious 
choral service, followed by an excellent sermon. Personally, 
I was too poorly and tired to join them, and therefore went 
back to the yacht with the children ; and before the others 
returned from their devotions, we were all in bed and fast 
asleep. 

Monday, December 3rd. — I had always heard that among 
the great attractions of the Bermudas were the coral-reefs and 
the strange-coloured fish which inhabit them. Accordingly, 
one of the first things which we did on our arrival yesterday 
was to engage a suitable boat and a man to take us out to-day 
to the reefs, which are at a considerable distance from the 
shore, in order that we might see these wonders of the deep ; 
although I scarcely anticipated that they would equal — cer- 
tainly not surpass — the innumerable marvellous and beautiful 
things which w r e had seen in the Bahamas. We managed to 
secure the services of one of the best boatmen on the island ; 
jet black, and a member of a large fraternity, being one of a 
family of seven brothers, who are all so absurdly alike in face, 
form, and voice, that it is almost impossible to distinguish one 
from the other. They rejoice in the name of Shebu; and 
appear to have all been very well known to Lord Charles 
Beresford, about whom they made frequent inquiries : his 
lordship forming a leading and apparently an entertaining 
subject of conversation among them. 

The eldest and most accomplished of the brothers arrived 
at 6 a.m. with a nice little sailing-boat ; but he might just as 
well have stayed away, for it was blowing so hard that he 



4oo FLIGHTY MERMAIDS. 



flatly refused to take us to the coral-reef, and suggested that 
we should go instead for a sail in Fairy-land, which, on 
this particular occasion, strange as it may seem, we had no 
particular wish to visit, having other things to do. He 
brought us one useful and pleasant piece of information, to 
the effect that there were no sharks so high up the Sound as 
the spot where we were lying, and that we might bathe over- 
board without any fear. This intelligence was received by the 
children with shouts and acclamations of joy ; and it was not 
long before the whole party were assembled on deck, and soon 
after in the water, where they enjoyed themselves to their 
hearts' content. I know nothing more delicious than a swim 
overboard in a warm sea, where it is possible to remain in the 
water for a considerable period without any fear of cramp, or 
of afterwards shivering to death. I think that I share the 
feeling of sailors in the matter of sharks, and dislike the 
Carcharias vulgaris more than almost any other creature ; one 
of my chief reasons being that the ugly and voracious brutes 
interfere with one's ability to bathe in the tropics, where a dip 
in the sea would really be so very great an addition to the 
enjoyment of life, if it could only be indulged in with even 
a moderate degree of safety, without incurring the risk of 
having a leg or an arm snapped off at any moment. How we 
all did enjoy ourselves ; especially the children ! They jumped 
off the gangway ; they swam alongside the yacht ; they hung 
on to the Turks' heads on the booms ; they clambered up the 
steps again, to have more high jumps ; they splashed ; they 
shrieked ; they chattered ; they ducked, and disported them- 
selves like a party of very flighty mermaids. Great were 
the amusement and astonishment of old Shebu and his crew 
of ebony mariners, as well as of Mr. Burgess, who, with his 
coxswain and smart man-of-war's men, in the 'Diamond's' 
boat, were alongside, waiting to take Tom over to the Dock- 
yard at Ireland Island. 



THE 'ORINOCO: 



401 



Before breakfast was removed, the deck-house was full of 
visitors, who continued to arrive in an unbroken stream until 
noon, when I was compelled to leave them to go on board 
the ' Orinoco, ' in order to make arrangements for 
sending a telegram to England — a some- 
what complicated operation here, all 
messages from the Bermudas 
having to be despatched 
by post or in 
charge of 
friends to 
New York, 
whence they 
are repeated 
by cable. 
The ' Ori- 
noco ' is a fine- 
looking ship, but 
her cabins are 
too small ; and 
I was assured 
that the tem- 
perature in the 
coolest of these 
had stood as 
high as 105° 
during her last 
passage from New 
York. I wonder what that of the hottest cabin must have 
been ! She was lying alongside a very West Indian-looking 
wharf, covered with an iron shed, with long drooping eaves, 
which effectually protected the contents from the sun. Mark 
Twain, in describing a similar (perhaps the same) wharf at 

3 c 




4Q2 THE DOCKYARD. 



Hamilton, remarks that upon it, under shelter, were some 
thousands of barrels containing that product which has car- 
ried the fame of Bermuda to other lands — the potato, ' with 
here and there an onion.' The last part of the sentence, he 
explains, is facetious, ' for they grow at least two onions in 
Bermuda to one potato.' 

All the chief officials connected with the Dockyard, to 
which we paid a short visit in the course of the morning, 
had been assisting in some way in the floating of the ■ North- 
ampton,' and we were delighted to hear that a telegram had 
been received just before our arrival, to the effect that the 
flag-ship had beea successfully hauled off, to the great joy and 
relief of everybody concerned, without having sustained much 
damage. The heavy squalls last night had really been of 
some service as it turned out ; the force of the wind, acting 
on the vast sides of the ship, having helped to push her off 
the rocks. 

In the afternoon, after lunching with Lady .Commerell, 
we visited the celebrated cave which was tunnelled in the rock 
by a former Admiral, and in which I believe a ball was once 
given. On a hot day the atmosphere must be deliciously 
cool ; but on the present occasion it was decidedly chilly. 
The views through the windows and arches cut in the rock 
over the deep-hued sea and the numerous rocks and islands 
are very beautiful — something like those from the entrance 
to the galleries at Gibraltar over the anchorage, the Neutral 
Ground, and Catalan Bay. 

From Lady Commerell's house I drove quickly down to the 
quay, and went on board the yacht, which at once steamed 
over to Ireland Island. It was a delightfully fine afternoon, 
though somewhat breezy ; and on the bridge (where I took 
up my position, in order to be sure of seeing anything I 
might have missed on our inward passage) it was quite cold 
enough. 



' BERMUDA ,' FL OA TING- DOCK. 



403 



Just outside the camber, Staff-Commander Clapp met 
us in the dockyard steam-launch ; piloted us in through the 
narrow entrance to the basin, and within a very short space of 
time moored us safely alongside the dockyard wall. Within 
the camber is the famous 'Bermuda,' the largest floating-dock 
in the world, built at North Woolwich in 1868, and towed 
across the Atlantic in thirty-five days by H.M.S. 'Warrior' 
and ' Black Prince.' The 
extreme length of the 
dock is 381 feet, and 
the breadth 123 feet, its 
total weight being 8340 
tons. The number of 
rivets used in its con- 
struction was 3,000,000, 
and they weighed 800 
tons — as nearly as pos- 
sible one-tenth of the 
entire structure. The 
dock is sufjficiently pow- 
erful to lift a ship of the 
' Minotaur ' class, with 

a displacement of 10,000 tons; and several of the largest 
ships of our navy, including the ' Bellerophon,' ' Boyal 
Alfred,' and 'Northampton,' have been upon it for repairs at 
various times. 

Soon after we had entered the camber, Tom arrived on 
board, looking very tired, after a hard day's work in the dock- 
yard and on board the various ships. He had invited Prince 
George of Wales and several of the captains to dine with us, 
and preparations had accordingly to be somewhat hastily 
made. But, notwithstanding the short notice, all went well ; 
and our little party, consisting of Captain and Mrs. Barnard- 
iston, Captain Durrant, Captain Victor Montagu, Prince 




4C4 COLONIAL ETIQUETTE. 



George of Wales, and ourselves, spent a very cheery evening, 
enlivened by plenty of music. 

I have given the names of our guests in the order in 
which I was told they ought to go in to dinner, according 
to the rules of naval precedence ; and I take this opportunity 
to remark that I should much rejoice if somebody would 
publish a book of etiquette and a scale of precedence applic- 
able to the whole of the Colonies, specially the West India 
and other remoter dependencies. In many of these places 
the rules that prevail are similar ; but it sometimes happens, 
that just as dinner is announced, and the host is nattering 
himself that his guests are rather nicely arranged, a flag- 
lieutenant, aide-de-camp, or secretary, interposes with the 
remark : ' I dare say you don't know our local etiquette : So- 
and-so ought to go in first ! ' Sometimes the Governor, to 
whom, as representing the Queen, I should be always inclined 
to give precedence, goes in second, or even third. Koyalties 
sometimes go in first, sometimes in the middle, and sometimes 
even last. As for Colonial Secretaries, Chief Justices, Attorney- 
Generals, Government officials, Admirals, Generals, English 
' Honourables,' and Colonial ' Eight Honourables ' and 
' Honourables,' the complex and variable character of the 
rules is most perplexing. I really gave up the subject in 
despair, for I found it was quite impossible to master it 
without devoting to it a greater amount of attention than 
I thought it was worth ; unless, indeed, I had intended to 
take up my abode for a lengthened period in these regions. 

It would be a good thing if some permanent resident in 
Bermuda, with abundance of spare time, would devote a por- 
tion of his leisure moments to mastering this apparently hope- 
lessly intricate question, and would give the result of his 
investigations to the world in the form of a well-digested 
little book or pamphlet, which would be of incalculable 
service to unfortunate strangers. 



'THE COTTAGE: 405 



Tuesday, December 4th. — I woke at four o'clock as usual, 
and spent a busy morning in writing, until interrupted by a 
succession of visitors from the various ships. Captain 
Barnardiston had been good enough to arrange to send his 
steam-launch at half-past ten, to take me to ' The Cottage ' 
— as the residence of the Captain Superintendent is called — 
where I looked forward to seeing the wonderful fish-pond, 
the description of which by the other members of our party, 
who had already paid Mrs. Barnardiston a short visit on the 
previous evening, had greatly excited my interest. 

It was a pleasant trip along the coast for about a mile 
to ' The Cottage ' — one of the best houses in the Islands, 
I should think : certainly one of the pleasantest to live in ; 
only one story high, surrounded, as almost all the houses 
are here, by a broad verandah, and standing in the middle 
of a pretty garden, the coral paths of which were so white 
that they looked almost like the deck of a ship. The garden 
has been until recently bright with flowers, but just now 
everything is black and scorched, as if by the heat of a 
fierce fire, and has all the appearance of having been swept 
l)y a hurricane. The house contains a suite of good rooms, 
conveniently arranged, opening one into another, and taste- 
fully and prettily furnished. A tea-table, made of a fine 
specimen of the native cedar, specially attracted my atten- 
tion. 

We did not stay long indoors, for we were all anxious to 
see the fish of which we had already heard such glowing 
description. And well worth a visit they were, swimming 
about in a natural cavern in the rock, into which the tide 
rose through iron gratings, and quite protected from the 
blazing heat , of the sun by part of the deck of an old 
ship. 

' Oh, how lovely ! ' was the first exclamation from every- 
body. 'What are those beautiful blue creatures swimming 



THE ANGEL-FISH. 



about? It is like another peep into "Fairy Land." Real 
fish cannot surely be so lovely as that ! ' ' Those are angels ! ' 
was the reply. 

We could therefore no longer wonder at their beauty, 
however much we might continue to admire it. The fish were 
indeed quite the most ethereal-looking objects I ever saw 
in this prosaic world of ours. In shape, and in colour espe- 
cially, they more than realised childhood's idea of what 
an angel's wings should be like — celestial blue, purple, and 
gold, in every possible shade of delicate tint, on a sort of sub- 
stratum of pale, shimmering brown. Their movements too 
might almost be said to be angelic, as they swam gracefully 

through the water, just 



"^ 




as one might imagine 



an angel would float 
through endless space. 
To complete the resem- 
blance, they had the 
most exquisite eyes, 
and a calm, serene ex- 
^ _^j pression of face. lam 

afraid no description, 

AXGEL-FISII J- 

however carefully writ- 
ten — certainly not one from such a pen as mine — indeed, 
scarcely even the most accurate picture from the most skilful 
pencil, could convey a really correct idea of the extremely 
fascinating charm of these rightly-named angel-fish. It was 
therefore rather a shock to one's feelings to hear that their 
ordinary name among the common people is ' Mike,' possibly 
(as some ingenious philologer has suggested) a convenient 
contraction of ' Michael the Archangel.' They do not in the 
least resemble the angel-fish of the Bahamas, or the bright 
little blue and yellow Spanish angel-fish of the same place. 
Those are more like our gold-fish at home, and do not weigh. 



THE COW-FISH. . 407 



more than three or four ounces at the most ; whereas the 
true blue angel-fish of the Bermudas weigh from two to six 
pounds. 

There were great red and brown and grey and white 
'groupus' (Epin&phalus striatus), 'gar-fish' (Hemirhcunphus 
pleii), bright canary-coloured 'snappers' (Lutjanus), and 'fine 
little black and white ' sergeant-majors ' as they are called, 
because of their many stripes ; ' pilot-fish ' (Naucrates ductor), 
which serve as guides to the shark ; ' porcupine-fish ' (Chilomyc- 
terus rctieulatus), looking, I thought, very much more like 
hedgehogs swimming about than porcupines ; the beautifully 
coloured ' cow-fish ' (Ostracion quadricorne) , with an expression 
of face exactly resembling that of a very benignant cow, horns 
and all ; and 






»*fe. " *-- ^|^5.\'V> 



another fish, 

almost exactly 

like it, but with 

only one horn %^^^SS5 

in the middle < '* **± . , ■ —^f^X,^' 

of its forehead. gow-msh 

To see a ' cow ' 

and a ' calf ' swimming about together was droll in the extreme ; 

and the smaller the fish, the more comical its shape appeared. 

There was also a huge eel, the particular name of which I 

fail to remember ; and a curious brown turbot with beautiful 

purple violet eyes, entirely different in make, shape, and colour 

to our old familiar friend of the English dinner-table, and 

apparently not more nearly allied to the blue and brown 

creature we saw at Stirrups Cay the other day. There were 

little puff-fish, sometimes as round as a puff-ball, sometimes 

as flat as a pancake, according as fancy impelled them to 

blow themselves out, like the frog in the fable, or to collapse 

and sink modestly to the bottom, where rock-fish lived, and 

cuttle-fish lurked in 'felonious corners, seeking whom they 



4o8 WHITEBAIT. 



might devour, cunningly concealing their ugly bodies by 
changing their colours and sprinkling themselves with sand 
and small stones, so that it is almost impossible to distinguish 
them from the rocks themselves, except by very minute 
observation. 

' New forms they take, and wear a borrowed dress ; 
Mock the true stories and colours well express. 
As the rock looks, they take a different stain — 
Dappled with grey, or blanch the livid vein.' 

There were shoals of little sparkling silvery whitebait 
darting about and adding life and animation to the whole, as 
they rushed backwards and forwards among their larger- 
bodied and slower-moving companions. In spite of their 
advantages of speed and activity, however, I fear that some of 
the poor bright glittering creatures were occasionally gobbled 
up, as they swam about in all directions. Specially brilliant 
did they look by contrast with one or more very bright scarlet 
fish, the name of which I forgot to ask, or with those sedate 
old turtles that flapped about the pool in the stateliest way 
imaginable ; or when they approached the pretty and delicious 
little hind-fish (Epinephalus guttatus), spotted like a Japanese 
deer or a dappled fawn, which lay on the almost uncovered 
rocks, basking in a stray sunbeam that had crept through 
the roof of this curious ocean-side prison. Highly suitable 
in every way for its purpose, and well contrived and arranged 
as was this fish-pond, or aquarium, I fear it must still be 
regarded in the light of a prison, the inmates of which are 
iron-railed, cribbed, cabined, and confined, unable to take 
long excursions or to join their companions in their gambols 
in the vasty deep. I could have sat watching them for hours ; 
but the announcement that the seine was about to be drawn 
sent us rushing off to the shore to see the result of the haul, 
by means of which the contents of the pond were to be re- 
plenished. I a-m afraid that the pool frequently loses some 



SEA-PEAS. 



of its tinny denizens, for, besides being one of the most 
marvellous of aquariums, it combines the more utilitarian 
purpose of preserving the fish 
fresh for domestic consump- 
tion against the day when an 
unexpected guest happens to 
arrive, or the weather is too 
rough to allow of any fish 
being drawn direct from the 
sea. The first haul only pro- 
duced a few small whitebait 
and ' squids,' or cuttle-fish, 
common enough here, al- 
though this particular variety 
was new to me. I had also 
the pleasure of seeing in their 
natural state the transparent, 
elegantly-formed ' sea-pens,' 
which I have so often admired 
in collections. They are often 
taken from the back of the 
living animal, and are appa- 
rently ready at once for us a 
as a writing implement. The 'sea-pens » 

poor cuttle in the present in- 
stance did not approve of the operation, and, even after 
death, ejected vast quantities of the inky fluid by means of 
which it frequently succeeds in covering its escape from its 
enemies. 

' Tli' endangered mollusk thus evades his fears, 
And inky hoards of fluid safety wears, 
A pitchy ink peculiar glands supply. 
Whose shades the sharpest beam of light defy. 
Pursued, he bids the sable fountain flow, 
And wrapt in clouds eludes th' impending foe.' 

3 D 




4 io THE OCTOPUS. 



While the captives were lying in the net on the white sand 
of the pretty little cove where the seine had been hauled up, 
they made the most extraordinary noise, which it was diffi- 
cult to believe could proceed from fish of any kind, much 
less from so comparatively small an object, ranking so low in 
the scale of creation, as the poor, much-vilified cuttle-fish, 
which, I really think, possesses far more intelligence than 
it is credited with. A near relative of the ' squid,' or common 
cuttle-fish (Sepia officinalis) is the well-known and well-abused 
octopus, or Devil-fish, son of a lovely mother and husband 
of a beauteous wife, whose praises have been sung for many 
ages by the greatest poets : a circumstance which ought, in 
these prosaic days, to secure even so ill-looking a spouse a 
cordial welcome in intellectual circles. 

I cannot but think, judging from my own recent igno- 
rance, that few people are aware of how closely Beauty and 
the Beast are allied in many instances, and in this one in 
particular. It really does seem at first incredible that the 
graceful argonaut --one of the daintiest gems of the Southern 
Seas — should bear any relation to, still less be thus closely 
connected with, so exceedingly hideous and repulsive-looking 
a creature as the Devil-fish, whose sinister and malignant 
aspect has caused him to be perhaps unduly calumniated by 
modern naturalists who have failed to do justice to his 
marital and parental affection and his generally intelligent 
instinct. 

Only a day or two since, I happened to see in part of an 
old number of the ' Illustrated London News,' pinned against 
the wall in a quaint little cottage by the sea, a description of 
a large ' squid ' (Lolu/o) that was taken in Trinity Bay, New- 
foundland, on September 22, 1877. The following dimensions 
will convey some idea of its enormous size : — length of long 
arm 30 ft., of short arm 11 ft., of body 10 ft., of caudal fin 
2 ft. 9 in., circumference of body 7 ft., diameter of suckers 



HOG-FISH. 



411 



i in. This huge monster was not destroyed until he had 
nearly crushed the boat by which he was attacked, and had 
partially disabled some of her crew. 

The next haul of the seine was much more successful, and 
produced many more ' squids ' and whitebait, a porcupine-fish, 
some nice little puffs, two or three other not very interesting- 
kinds of fish, and a large hideous, horny creature, with a head 
exactly like that of a pig, small eyes, and the most malignant 
expression of 
face I ever saw. 
He had great 
sharp spines 
where the mane 
of a wild boar 
would be, and 
was of a kind of 
pink - marbled 
colour, just like 
a common do- 
mestic pig, 

x ° HOC FISH 

freshly scalded 

and ready for cooking. His weight I should think was about 
8 or 9 lbs. This interesting object was sent on board the 
yacht the same night, and under the skilful and judicious 
manipulation of the cook, was converted into a most excellent 
dish, which had rather a porcine flavour about it. A very 
curious and beautiful sponge, of bright scarlet, or perhaps 
rather cardinal-red, was also brought up in the seine. It is 
said that the angel-fish frequents the places where these 
sponges grow at the bottom of the sea. Can it be that even 
the ' angels ' are vain, and think that the contrast of colour 
tends to show off to the best advantage the exquisite beauty 
of their complexion ; or are they even greedier and more 
prosaic ; and do they like to feast on the small animalcula 




412 ' THE GA RIVE T ' SCRE W-COR VE TTE. 

by which such succulent and inviting morsels as ' Neptune's 
gloves ' — as the sponge is called — are surrounded ? It must 
be confessed that his marine majesty's handgear is of rather 
a disappointing character, for its red colour quickly dis- 
appears and leaves nothing but a delicate brown framework, 
resembling the fragile skeleton-leaves sometimes produced 
by the action of chloride of lime, but without their snowy 
whiteness. There were also a few jelly-fish, echini, and 
other small and insignificant objects in the net, but nothing 
else of special interest. It was curious to see how the fish 
in the aquarium gobbled up the fragments that remained, 
pouncing upon the wholly or half-dead fish, and making 
short work of them before they had time to reach the bottom 
of the pool.. The cuttle-fish from which the sea-pens had 
been removed was evidently regarded as a special delicacy, 
corresponding in character to the boned larks and quails 
that grace fashionable dinner and supper-tables during the 
London season. 

It was now getting late, and, fascinated as we were by 
the ' angels ' and their graceful ways, we were obliged — almost 
reluctantly, so deeply interested were we in watching the beau- 
tiful creatures — to remember that we were engaged to lunch 
with Captain Victor Montagu on board the 'Garnet,' and to 
meet the Admiral. We therefore quickly steamed back and 
found all ready and waiting for us. The ' Garnet ' is a com- 
posite screw-corvette of 2 1 20 tons, carrying twelve guns, and 
commissioned to the North American and West Indian station. 
After we had been all round the ship, which is just now being 
put into thorough repair, some of the party went off in the 
Admiral's smart little cutter-yacht, the ' Diamond,' which 
was built in Portsmouth Dockyard, under the supervision of 
Lord Charles Beresford. Now she is rigged like a Bermuda 
craft, and sails 'like a witch,' I believe, whether there is any 
wind or not. We all enthusiastically admired her appearance 



THE HOSPITAL. 413 



as she quietly crept out of the Camber, spread her wings to 
the breeze, and darted off like an arrow from a bow. 

While we were discussing the graceful lines and fine pro- 
portions of the 'Diamond,' Tom and the Admiral made up 
two spirited sporting matches : one to sail the yacht's cutter, 
' The Gleam,' against the ' Northampton's ' cutter, the ' Ella ' ; 
and the other to row our gig, ' The Ray,' against the Admiral's 
private gig, Tom and the Admiral each to steer his own 
boat. The Eoyal Bermuda Yacht Club have kindly promised 
to get up some races, in order to enable us to see something of 
the performances of their famous craft. There is also a 
dinghy yacht club here, of which Princess Louise is the Lady 
Patroness, and the members of which also wish to afford us 
an opportunity of seeing their boats race. The Admiral and 
Governor are going to offer some prizes for competition ; and 
Tom and I have each promised a challenge-cup for the respec- 
tive yacht clubs, and some prizes for the long-shore races ; so 
that, with plenty of entries and propitious weather we ought 
to have a good regatta and great fun. 

After settling the various knotty points connected with the 
impending contests, we embarked in the Admiral's steam- 
launch to perform the interesting duty of inspecting the 
hospital, cemetery, schools, and other public institutions. 
First we went to the hospital, passing on the way the same 
coast we had seen this morning, and catching a glimpse of a 
cottage and a bowling-alley on a little island just big enough 
to hold them, connected with Ireland Island by means of 
a tiny causeway. Further on, the shore is well wooded, 
and in a bend of the coast is a small boat-harbour. Just 
in a line with the gates of the hospital, and below the hill 
on which it stands, we were met by Dr. Mason and Dr. 
0' Grady, who took us through the various buildings, which 
were spacious and airy, and appeared to be admirably well 
arranged. 



414 



SOMERSET ISLAND FERRY-BOAT. 



We went into every ward and saw the patients, except 
those who were suffering from infectious diseases. The 
poor invalids, I was told, had greatly appreciated some old 
newspapers and ' Sunbeams ' which I had presented to them 
(and which can be burnt when read; ; as of course these 
patients cannot be allowed any books from the excellent 
library attached to the hospital. The officers' quarters are 
cosy, their mess-room and sitting-room being particularly 
comfortable, provided as they are with the usual spacious 
verandahs, with jalousies opening in squares, each command- 
ing a charming view. The outlook in the direction of Boaz 
Island specialty interested me. It was in this island that the 
convicts performed so much hard labour, and did such good 



-•• -:^., ... 




SOMERSET ISLAND FERRY-BOAT 



work, in levelling the top of the hill and building the use- 
ful edifices that have withstood so many years of exposure 
to wind and weather. I fear that we sometimes forget that 
convicts, although they are criminals, are also human beings, 
and deserve our gratitude for the many great and beneficial 
works which they have executed in many parts of the world ; 
even though their labour may have partaken of the nature of 
' travaux forces,' and may not have been undertaken precisely 
at their own sweet will and pleasure. 

Somerset Island, where some of the repairs to the vessels 
are executed, and where a detachment of the garrison is 
quartered, is chiefly remarkable as the proud possessor of one 



DR. REES. 415 

carriage and two horses, which are on rare occasions conveyed 
by horse- ferry to Ireland Island ; but for which circumstance 
equine quadrupeds would be as entirely unknown in the neigh- 
bourhood of Her Majesty's dockyard as they are practically 
in Venice.. Touching the ' Queen of the Adriatic,' I remember 
being told a story — hen trovato, if not vero — of a Venetian 
gentleman who had a palace on the Grand Canal, and, 
foolishly dissatisfied with his beautiful gondola, ordered a 
steam-launch to be built for him by an English firm. Of how 
many horse-power would he like the engines to be, he was 
asked. ' What is the use of talking about horse-power to me ? ' 
was the reply; ' we have no horses in Venice.' 

The causeways and ferries afford a roundabout means 
of communication by land between Hamilton and Ireland 
Island ; so that, in the event of heavy gales occurring, the 
inhabitants of the latter place are not absolutely cut off 
from all their supplies, or quite starved out, though they are 
sometimes, but not very often, put to great inconvenience 
when boats are unable to run direct between the -two places. 
To-day it seemed quite impossible to realise such a state of 
things, as we gazed over the placid and unruffled waters of 
the Great Sound to the North Eoad, which we could see 
peeping forth at intervals among the heather, from Spanish 
Point right away to St. George's Island, the lighthouse on 
St. David's being also plainly visible in the same direction. 
On our way down to the shore, after our inspection of the 
hospital, we were introduced to Dr. Eees, who is a great 
botanist, and who kindly helped me with the names of many 
of the plants which have been puzzling me so long. 

Eesuming our voyage in the steam-launch, in a very short 
time we arrived at the landing-place for the Admiralty School, 
which was the next institution we were to visit. The school 
appears to be excellently managed by Mr. and Mrs. Eoberts, 
who take a great interest in their pupils. They had been 



4i6 THE ADMIRALTY SCHOOL. 



hoping that we should arrive during school hours, in order 
that we might see and hear something of the system of 
instruction, and specially that we might hear the children 
sing ; but the claims on our time had unfortunately been too 
many. We could, therefore, only glance at the boys' books 
and exercises with the master, and at the girls' needle-work 
with the mistress, which last we thought wonderfully credit- 
able ; especially the sewing done by the girls of between nine 
and fourteen, who had made several kinds of undergarments 
very neatly — some quite beautifully — totally unassisted. We 
left half a dozen copies of the ' Sunbeam ' for the six best boys, 
and the same number for the six best girls, as a slight consola- 
tion to them for not having seen us in the flesh. We also 
invited thirty of the girls and as many boys, to go over the 
yacht ; and this tour of inspection will, I think, probably be 
even a greater pleasure for them. From the schools we 
went to the cemetery — one of the prettiest ' God's acres ' I 
have ever seen, situated just on the top of one of the numer- 
ous little rocky necks of land that separate the wide ocean 
from the many lovely sounds and inlets that are so nu- 
merous among the Bermudas. It is tastefully planted, 
and yet only just enough not to interfere with the natural 
beauties of the ground. There are many interesting and 
some beautiful monuments, and several of the inscriptions are 
touching. 

From here Tom went to join a party of naval-officers, who 
were playing lawn-tennis hard by, while I proceeded to pay a 
little visit to Mrs. Barnardiston, and to ask permission for our 
maids, to whom we were showing some of the beauties and 
wonders of the islands, to see the aquarium. There I found 
Prince George of Wales and several other officers, who had 
been among the lawn-tennis players. Some more dropped in 
from time to time until we were quite a large party. Then 
the brief twilight ended ; it became dark • and everybody dis- 



GOVERNMENT HOUSE. 



417 



persed to their homes, most of which were of a floating char- 
acter, and not boasting of such a luxury as Mrs. Barnardiston's 
cosy fireside — a luxury not at all to be despised in this damp 
climate. 

We had accepted an invitation to dine with the Governor 
and Mrs. Gallwey, at Government House, in the evening ; 
and after leaving the cottage we had therefore to go all the 
way over to Hamilton in Captain Barnardiston's steam- 
launch, which he kindly lent us. Luckily it was a fine night, 
but the expedition was rather a serious addition to the fatigues 
of the day. 

Nothing could exceed the kindness of our host and 
hostess, who had invited some of the most distinguished 
official personages in the islands to meet us. The simple but 
effective character of the table decorations struck me as very 
remarkable, especially when one remembered the devastation 
that had been caused among all vegetation of a delicate 
nature by the recent hurricane. The materials used were 
merely branches of coleus, crotons, and other beautiful foliage 
plants, tastefully arranged on the table and surrounded by 
ferns. 

The moon was shining brightly, and our drive to the boat 
in an open carriage 



was most enjoyable. 
Tom and I were so 
tired that, on ar- 
riving on board the 
launch, we curled 
ourselves up in se- 
parate corners, and 
remained buried in 
the deepest slumber 
till we reached the 
board 




Sunbeam ' and were roused to go on 
I fear, therefore, that I can scarcely furnish a lively 

3 e 



4i 8 A MOOS 1 LIGHT NIGHT. 

or accurate description of the beauties of a passage by moon- 
light between Hamilton and Ireland Island. 

The whispering waves were half asleep 3 

The clouds were gone to play ; 
And on the bosom of the deep 

The smile of heaven lay. 




CHAPTEE XVIII. 

BERMUDA. 

Close to the wooded 

bank below, 

In grassy calm the 

waters sleep, 

And to the ' Sunbeam ' 

proudly show 

The coral rocks they 

love to steep. 



Wednesday, December 5th. 

rpOM went off early to the dockyard ; and 
J- we started soon afterwards, by the South 
Road, for St. George's Island and harbour. 
The drive was of the pleasantest, with ever- 









•5,, 




changing views over land and sea — or perhaps one ought to 
say over sea and land, for the former very largely predomi- 



4 2o NEPTUNE'S GROTTO. 

nated, and the numerous islands looked like mere specks, 
dotted about and peeping above water. We passed by Pem- 
broke Church and Government House, and leaving Clarence 
Hill and the Admiral's boat-house, at Ducking Stool Bay, on 
our left, we made our first halt at the ' Devil's Hole,' or ' Nep- 
tune's Grotto,' a curious rocky cave, which, although only 
separated by the width of the road from the sea on the south 
shore, is entirely supplied with water from the north coast 
by means of a natural subterranean passage. 

The proprietor, a civil old man, ' for a consideration,' allows 
the visitor to see his 'pets,' consisting of some hundreds 
of finny monsters of the deep, principally repulsive -looking 
red and brown groupers, rock-fish of various kinds, turbot, 
and other varieties of fish. Conspicuous among them all 
was one of the blue and yellow angel-fish already described, 
gliding along near the surface of the pool, and now and 
then lazily waving one of its winglike fins to change the 
direction of its course, in obedience to the call of the pro- 
prietor of the cave, who, by clapping his hands, caused the 
fish to swim towards him, when it would eat bread daintily 
from his hand, or complacently lie against the rocky side 
of the cave, to be gently rubbed and tickled. It was strange 
to see so much intelligence displayed by a creature belonging 
to an order which one has always been disposed to regard 
as rather deficient in that quality. Very different to the 
angel-fish were the groupers — fierce, voracious creatures which, 
it is said, would tear a man to pieces before he reached the 
bottom of the pool, were he unfortunate enough to fall into 
it. A dead sheep and a dog were thrown in not very long 
ago as an experiment, and both were torn to fragments and 
disappeared at once. 

So greedy are these groupers that they jump almost 
out of the water in their eagerness to snatch food. They 
are indeed easily captured by means of a piece of white 



PAINTERS' VALE. 421 

rag tied to a hook ; and it appears to be one of the ' amuse- 
ments ' of visitors to the cave to catch them in this way, pull 
them out of the water, and throw them in again. What 
would Izaak Walton have said to such ' sport ' ? The 

* Complete Angler,' it is true, could be slightly cruel upon 
occasion. 

From the Devil's Hole we drove along the shore of 
Harrington Sound to Painters' Yale, one of the most charm- 
ing places in the island, which derives its name from the 
numerous picturesque spots and beautiful views which attract 
many artists to its shady groves and rocky caves and 
grottoes. Some of the caverns are of great size and depth, 
have never been explored, and rejoice in highly romantic 
names. While Mr. Pritchett was sketching one of the caves, 
called the ' Shark's Hole,' I conversed with Mrs. Penniston, 
whose husband owns the neighbouring property. We were 
seated beneath the shade of the orange trees, among the 
branches of which the beautiful little blue and red birds of 
Bermuda were flitting and building their nests, and chirping 
and chattering ; occasionally coming quite close to our feet, 
and pecking and hopping about among the grass in the tamest 
manner possible. The contrast between their light blue 
and red plumage and the ripe orange fruit, white flowers, 
and glossy green leaves, was very charming, and I could 
have watched the feathered darlings and their pretty little 
ways for hours. The gambols of one pair among the foliage 
of a small cedar tree were most amusing. The brilliant 
glossy scarlet gentleman, looking as if he were very much 

* got up ' in his best Sunday clothes, with his topknot erect, 
was trilling his sweetest lays to the lady, who, in her more 
sober dress of brown relieved with red, listened with her 
head coquettishly on one side, and then flew to a branch a 
little farther off, as if somewhat bored, pecking and pluming 
herself as though she were not paying the least attention ; 



THE BLUE-BIRD. 



but all the time keeping a watchful eye on her suitor, and 
following him up quickly if he in his turn retired to a distance. 
The pretty blue-bird (Sialia sialis), the plumage of which is of 
a most delicate hue, is, I believe, plentiful throughout North 
America, migrating southward in November. It has been 
classed among the cage-birds of the islands ; but except for 




WALSDfGHAM CAVES 



its beauty, it has not many attractions as a pet, for it seldom 
sings in captivity, although its sky-blue jacket, relieved with 
purple, would make it an ornament to any aviary. The red- 
birds, or ' Cardinal gros-beaks ' (Petylus Cardinalis) are a 



WALSINGHAM CA VES. 



423 



kind of Virginian nightingale, gifted with vocal powers of 
no mean order, and easily tamed. These birds abound in 
Bermuda at the present time, although they have probably 
been introduced into the islands within the last hundred 
years or so. At one time they were still more numerous, and 
used to fly about in large flocks ; but the islanders thought 
that they did more harm than good to the crops, and therefore 
succeeded in nearly exterminating them ; but Nemesis was 
not slow to pat in an appearance, and the Bermuda crops were 
all but destroyed by the ravages of insects. A fine was then 
imposed on anyone killing a red-bird, the result of which has 
been that they have now become almost as abundant as they 
were originally. 

From Painters' Vale a short drive brought us by way of 
The Flatts to Dr. Outerbridge's farm, where are situated the 
celebrated Walsingham Caves. The carriages were sent round 
by the road ; and we proceeded to walk to the sea-shore across 
the land adjoining the farm, the crops on which appeared to 
consist principally of onions, potatoes, and tomatoes, planted 
in curious little clearings among the trees, which serve to pro- 
tect them from the prevailing winds. Notwithstanding this 
precaution, however, last week's hurricane has caused terrible 
devastation among the vegetation, one entire field of young 
tomato plants having been uprooted and blown nearly a 
hundred yards away. The Walsingham Caves are most 
picturesquely situated in the centre of a thick wood, through 
which we had some difficulty in forcing our way, owing to the 
fallen branches and stumps of trees which impeded our course. 
From the rocky roofs of the caves hang numerous stalactites, 
covered with a sort of delicate fretwork of lime deposit, which 
has the appearance of the finest lace. One peculiarity of these 
caverns is that the atmosphere of the interior is quite mild 
and soft, and not at all like the dank air that generally per- 
vades such places. In the centre is a pool, with a small 



424 



MOORE 'S CALABASH TREE. 



mushroom-shaped stalagmite projecting from it. The effect 
of the bright sunbeams shining on the light green water and 

of the darkness of the cave 



jm 



! 
; - 






p§ - 

-r - ■■■■'■■"..;. "'"■'■ ■' 

■r -<_,-- Mlli 111 1 ■ 

HT 







moore's calabash tree 



itself, illuminated at the 
further end by. the brush- 
wood torches carried by 
our guides, was very fine. 
At the entrance we picked 
up a curious specimen of 
Piper obtusifolium, which 
resembles in appearance 
a naturally-grown green 
Neptune's trident. 

From the caves we had 
a long but interesting walk, 
past innumerable small 
pools filled with curious fish, 
to the calabash tree under 
which Thomas Moore, the 

poet, composed the stanzas which have delighted so many of 

his legions of readers : — 

Oh had we some bright little isle of our own, 
In a blue summer-ocean, far off and alone ; 

Where simply to feel that we breathe, that we live, 
Is worth the best joy that life elsewhere can give. 

Moore obtained an appointment under Government as Kegis- 
trar to the Court of Admiralty at Bermuda, in 1803, and 
arrived at his post at the beginning of the following year. 
According to the trustworthiest authorities he seems to have 
been a most pugnacious little man, and to have been con- 
stantly getting into difficulties of all sorts on account of his 
peppery temperament. He only remained at Bermuda for 
two months, at the end of which period he appointed a deputy 



FARMING IN BERMUDA. 425 

to fill his place, and, after making a tour in the United States, 
returned to England. 

Just as we reached the road again, we came to a new 
house, the owner of which, observing that I appeared tired, 
kindly invited me to come in and rest, while the others went 
on to see some more caves, thus entailing a long and some- 
what fatiguing walk. In the interval of repose I obtained some 
interesting information concerning Bermuda from my host, 
who is here regarded as an extensive farmer ; his estate 
covering an area of about forty acres, which is considerable 
for these small islands, although it does not sound much to 
our English ears. When, however, he explained to me that 
from an acre of onions he could, under favourable circum- 
stances, realise a profit of as much as 80/. in the year, the 
limited dimensions of his estate became less surprising. He also 
informed me that new potatoes were an important item of pro- 
duction, as they fetch as much as six shillings per bushel on 
the farm. In fact, farming in Bermuda is more like market- 
gardening ; a ready sale for the produce being found in the 
United States. In the spring season special steamers carry 
cargoes of potatoes, tomatoes, onions, and other vegetables 
and fruits to New York. The more enterprising inhabitants 
are anxious to establish a better direct communication with 
England, which seems to be rather a difficult matter to 
arrange, all homeward and other mails being at present 
despatched either via New York, Halifax, or Jamaica. 

Some of the trees which we noticed by the road-side were 
curious, especially one called the ' pride of India, ' which 
I had only previously seen with bare branches. It is not 
unlike a large sweet verbena, and bears a similar greyish- 
coloured flower. There were also large quantities of guavas, 
from which the jelly so well known to us is produced, and a 
pretty tree with a large lavender flower, and great orange- 
coloured clusters of what are called 'pigeon-berries.' We 

3 f 



426 



THE ARTILLERY-PLANT. 



likewise saw specimens of a plant which grows luxuriantly here, 
and which is much used for garden-borders, called the ' lace- 
plant,' from the extreme delicacy and beauty of its foliage ; 
and another called the ' artillery-plant,' owing to the curious 
way in which the seeds that grow round the edges of the 
leaves explode if touched when the plant is nearly ripe, crack- 
ing with a sharp noise like that which might be produced 
by Lilliputian riflemen. The rose-geranium is here called the 
' graveyard geranium,' probably from the fact that it is grown 




ST. GEORGE'S .AND WRECKS 



in all the churchyards on the island, and that the pillows 
used in coffins are frequently stuffed with the leaves and 
flowers. 

In former times the visitor from other parts of the 
Bermudas to St. George had to reach that island by means of 
a ferry; but of late years a causeway, nearly two miles in 
length, has been constructed over a series of reefs in St. 
George's Harbour, and across Long Bird Island, ending in a 



ST DAVID'S ISLAND. 427 

swing-bridge, which enables boats to pass through the channel. 
This causeway was commenced in 1867, and was finished in 
1 87 1, at a cost to the colony of 32,000/. As we drove along 
this most interesting piece of engineering work, a strange 
sight met our eyes. I have already referred to the number of 
wrecks that are to be seen in the Bermudian harbours, but 
here there were wrecks on every side, including old hulks 
which had been brought here to end their days, and to be 
broken up, and the remains of vessels which had been driven 
on to the rocks, and which were being gradually knocked to 
pieces by the fury of the sea and wind. It was a spectacle 
which would have caused consternation in the mind of a 
Lloyd's agent. 

Soon after we had reached St. George's Island we em- 
barked in a small boat belonging to the agent of the Cunard 
Steamship Company, for St. David's Island, passing on our 
way two or three of the loveliest spots in the Bermudas, 
known respectively as the 'Fairies' Hole,' the 'Fairies' Walk,' 
and the ' Doll's Bock.' The channels that divide the numerous 
islets are all more or less picturesque, although the innumerable 
wrecks by which they are studded produce a somewhat ghastly 
effect. Three ships, the 'Francis Hilyard,' the 'Daniel 
Dresser ' of Boston, and the German vessel ' Der Sud,' have 
been towed in here recently as derelicts, and not being in 
quite so dilapidated a condition as the rest, are now used 
as storehouses for kerosene oil, of which, at the time of our 
visit, we were informed that there were no less than 10,000 
barrels on board. 

St. David's is one of the most curious and primitive islands 
of the Bermudas. Sir Henry Lefroy, in describing it a few 
years ago, said that on the occasion of his visit he had him- 
self seen a man ploughing, with a team consisting of his 
wife, a donkey, and a pig. There are now said to be two 
horses on the island, though some people assert somewhat 



428 



ST. DAVID 'S LIGHTHOUSE. 



paradoxically that one of them is a donkey. I myself saw 
one of the equine quadrupeds, with a nice little fluffy foal by 
her side. 

From the summit of the St. David's lighthouse, which 
has been the means of averting a large number of wrecks, the 
view obtained over the sea and islands was very extensive ; 
and the evidences of catastrophes were only too frequent in 
the form of the timbers and framework of many ships which 
had sailed on to destruction among the cruel rocks. On our 

way down to the shore we 
passed several of the light- 
house-keepers' cottages, and 
a curious fish-kraal, in which 
were some extraordinary 
cray-fish. As we returned 
we saw a small steamer 
lying off the harbour, waiting 
to come in ; but as neither 
pilot nor quarantine officer 
had gone off to her, and 
darkness was rapidly coming 
on, it seemed probable that 
she would have to wait until 
the morning before entering 
the narrow channel which 
leads to the town of St. 
George. We also passed the 
place where, m the olden 
times, whales used to be 
boiled down ; but the number 
of these fish that are now captured is not sufficient to 
make it worth while to adopt this process. The ' schools ' of 
whales very seldom approach close enough to the land to be 
caught by the fishermen of the place, who have consequently 




57: GEORGE'S TOWN. 429 



lost some of their skill. I expect that the truth of the matter 
is that in former days great recklessness was shown in the 
way in which whales, both old and young, were destroyed, and 
that this has had the effect of diminishing their numbers to 
a very considerable extent. 

The town of St. George is clean, well-built, and pleasant- 
looking. We went to the church, which is a curious edifice, 
and which contains an interesting collection of sacramental 
plate of elegant design, presented by William III. The church 
clock had originally been made for Portsmouth Dockyard ; 
but being too small for the position for which it was intended, 
it was secured by an enterprising and economical Bermu- 
dian, at a reduced price, as suitable for the church-tower of 
his native place. Some tombs in the churchyard attracted 
our attention ; and we spent a long time in deciphering 
several quaint inscriptions upon them. In the public garden 
is a monument to Sir George Somers, originally erected in 
1726 by Charlotte and John Hope, with an inscription by Sir 
John Lefroy. It commemorates the shipwreck which took 
place on July 28, 1609, and which led to the ultimate coloni- 
sation of the Bermudas by the British. In the year named, 
a fleet of nine vessels, commanded by Sir Thomas Gates, Sir 
George Somers, and Capt. Newport, on its way to Virginia, 
was dispersed by a great storm, one of the vessels called the 
' Sea Adventure,' with Sir George Somers on board, being cast 
on the reefs of the Bermudas, and the crew, to the number of 
150, fortunately contriving to reach land. They spent ten 
months on the islands, during which period they constructed 
a cedar pinnace, in which some of their number sailed for 
Virginia, whence they returned in due course in a larger 
vessel. Sir George Somers soon afterwards died on one of 
the islands ; and those of his crew who still remained, with 
the exception of three, who volunteered to stay behind to 
retain possession of the islands, sailed for England, where a 



43° 



COLONISATION OF THE BERMUDAS. 



company was soon afterwards formed for the purpose of colo- 
nising the Bermudas. The first ship-load of emigrants, under 
the direction of a, carpenter named Kichard Moore, landed at 
Hamilton on July 1 1 , 1 6 r 2 . 

It was nearly dark when we resumed our journey and again 
crossed the long causeway. We inquired for Mr. Bertram's 
house, where we were told we should find an interesting col- 
lection of Bermudian curiosities, marine and terrestrial, animal, 
vegetable, and mineral. Elaborate instructions were given to 

us by a man 
whom we met ; 
but when we 
reached the 
place where 
we had been 
told to turn 
off the main 
road, we could 
scarcely be- 
lieve it possi- 
ble for a car- 
riage to pro- 
ceed along the 
rough track. 
We decided, 
however, to 
make the at- 
tempt ; . and one of the party accordingly got out and walked 
in front while the driver skilfully guided our gay little horse up 
and down the most extraordinary places, over ploughed fields, 
between trees, the branches of which met not only over, but 
across the path, so that they had forcibly to be held back 
while we passed ; sometimes ascending a bank at such an 
angle that I thought we must inevitably be capsized, at others 




MR. BERTRAM. 



431 



coming down steep places or over such huge stones, with such 
jolts, that I thought our springs must break, especially when 
we came to the margin of the sea close by a ruined cottage, 
and meandered along over the beach and boulders for some 
distance, the waves on one side of us washing the wheels of 
the carriage. At last we saw a light, and pulling up outside 
a dwelling on the top of one of the steepest banks we had en- 
countered, we were assured by a very stout negress that this 
was 'Massa Bertram's house.' We entered the kitchen, which 
was dimly illumined by the light of a tallow candle, and our 
arrival was duly announced to Mr. Bertram. To describe the 
personal appearance of 
our host, as he emerged 
from the dark shadow, 
would be almost impos- 
sible. He was a very old 
man, quaintly dressed 
in a long dressing-gown, 
something like a gaber- 
dine, with grey hair 
hanging in wild elfish 
locks, and. a still longer 
beard, the central por- 
tion of which was care- 
fully plaited in three and 
brought to a point. He 

was not bad-looking, and his eyes were bright and piercing. 
Eather to our disappointment, after our long and perilous 
journey, he announced that none of his curios were for sale, 
but that he would be very happy to show us his museum, 
which was situated at a short distance from the cottage. 
The stout negress led the way, holding a tallow-candle which 
nickered, and spluttered, and guttered, and nearly went out 
in the wind ; and, with the aid of that and with the light 




432 ' THE OLD CURIOSiTY SHOP: 

from a paraffin lamp, we managed to see something of the 
collection, which, although somewhat overpoweringly odori- 
ferous, was well worth a visit, and fully came up to the 
description which we had received of it. I was enabled to 
verify the names of many specimens which we ourselves had 
procured, and to add much to my knowledge of the natural 
history of Bermuda by our interview with the owner of 
what might with truth be called ' The Old Curiosity Shop.' 
Our visit did not at first appear to afford much pleasure to 
Mr. Bertram ; but he afterwards assured us that he would not 
mind if I stayed for hours, as I appeared to take a real inter- 
est in his rarities. He did not, however, like showing them to 
' folks who put their heads in at the door and then went away, 
saying that they had seen Bertram's collection and knew all 
about it.' He was a shrewd old man, and some of his 
remarks were most amusing. I felt quite sorry that we had 
not been able to find him by daylight, and to spend more time 
with him. On leaving, he begged me to pay him another 
visit, and to remain two or three days if I liked, when he 
would give me a great deal more information. 

By this time it had become darker than ever, and how we 
managed to regain the main road in safety I scarcely know, 
although Mr. Bertram appeared to be somewhat indignant 
when I suggested that his carriage- drive was a little difficult 
on a dark night. All ended well, however ; and we reached 
Hamilton just in time for the hotel dinner, which is said 
' to run ' from six to eight o'clock, and which as a rule during 
our stay appeared to have run out by the time we arrived 
home from our various expeditions. 

Thursday, December 6th. — This morning the Admiral was 
good enough to send the ' Diamond,' with its black pilot, to 
take us for an excursion to Fairyland ; a pleasant place to 
start for, though our experience of it was somewhat stormier 
than was agreeable. It was blowing more than half a gale 



FAIRY LAND. 



453 



of wind when we left the shore, and even with two reefs in 
her mainsail, the lee-rail of the ' Diamond ' was well under 
the water, which occasionally threatened to fill the little cock- 
pit in which we sat, comparatively sheltered from the wind 
and waves. On arriving at Spanish Point, the ' Diamond ' 
was brought up alongside the shore, and Mr. Pritchett and I 
embarked in the dinghy with two sailors, in order to row up 
the shallower waters, where the larger boat could not pene- 
trate. The scene was undeniably beautiful, but we could not 
avoid a feeling of disappointment, probably because our ideas 




FAIRY LAXB 



had been formed from the written descriptions of it as it 
appears on a placid summer's day, when the islands lie bask- 
ing on the face of the blue sea. To-day the condition of 
things was quite different. The waves were beating angrily 
against the shore, while overhead black clouds, evidently the 
forerunners of a tempest, scudded across the otherwise bright 
sky, and obscured the sun at frequent intervals. Very near 
the entrance to the narrow channel leading to ' Fairy Land ' is a 
magnificent mangrove tree, which, as it was growing in a more 
healthy locality than is usual with these trees, we were enabled 
to observe with close attention : its peculiar style of growth,, 

3 a 



434 A STONE-BOAT. 



and the way in which its roots are thrown into the water 
from a considerable height — producing a somewhat similar 
effect to that of the Pandanus —being specially noticeable. 
Each creek and channel which we ascended presented fresh 
changes of scenery. At the top of the main channel we landed 
in a Bermudian cedar grove, in the centre of which a large 
house is being built for an American general, the material used 
being coralline limestone, which looked very white and cool in 
the midst of the encircling verdure. Birds of various kinds 
abounded ; and we spent a long time in observing the gambols 
of some dozen blue and red birds among the crops in the 
kitchen-garden, up and down the furrows of which they ran 
and hopped in the most amusing manner, while one or two of 
their number, perched on a rail-fence, carolled their sweetest 
lays, apparently with the sole object of amusing their com- 
panions. Presently we met the person in charge of the build- 
ing operations, who appeared to be something of an architect 
and something of a boat-builder, and who, in order to prove 
the truth of a favourite theory of his, that it was quite possi- 
ble to build a serviceable boat of stone, provided that due care 
were taken to shape and ballast her properly, had constructed 
from the material named a small craft, which was now float- 
ing alongside the little pier, and which he was proceeding to 
rig. I was much interested in his conversation, and thought 
that I should like to add a stone-boat to my already somewhat 
large collection. I accordingly left instructions for a model 
to be built for me, and rigged in Bermudian fashion, which 
would make it more interesting. 

It was now time to return; and this we found a some- 
what serious operation, both tide and wind being against 
us. Directly we emerged from the more sheltered creeks, 
our two sailors had the greatest difficulty hi keeping the 
bow of the boat to the sea. To add to our troubles, a 
very heavy squall suddenly came on, torrents of rain de- 



A ROUGH PASSAGE. 435 

scended from a cloud as black as ink, the lightning flashed, 
the thunder pealed and roared, and the waves looked black 
and threatening, rearing their angry white crests as if eager to 
engulf our tiny boat. It was all that we could do to manage 
the rudder while the two men rowed ; and at one moment 
I thought that all was over, when a small sea broke into 
the boat, and a larger one threatened to follow its example. 
By changing our course, however, getting under shelter of the 
point, and then taking a fresh departure as soon as the men 
had had time to recover their strength and breath after their 
buffeting and tossing, we safely reached the ' Diamond ' once 
more, drenched and cold, but greatly to the relief of Burgess, 
the black pilot, who had suffered some anxiety on our account. 
On our way out of the creek, in one of the most sheltered 
coves, we passed the wreck of a tiny boat, a fairy-like craft, 
which we could almost fancy might have been used by elves. 
There she lay, abandoned, on the beach, partly resting on the 
snowy-white sands and partly lapped by the water ; and I 
could not help thinking how narrow had been oar escape from 
meeting with a similar fate. 

The sail back to the yacht was glorious. We simply flew 
before the wind, the ' Diamond ' shaking the spray from her 
bows as we dashed along, guided in the most skilful manner, 
and brought up alongside the ' Sunbeam.' 

During the remainder of the morning I was busily occu- 
pied in sending out invitations for a reception on board the 
' Sunbeam,' to take place on Saturday, a very general wish 
having been ' expressed by our friends on shore to see the 
yacht. At noon, a meeting was held at the Mechanics' Institute 
for the purpose of inaugurating the ambulance centre, which 
meeting went off very successfully, and was attended by the 
most influential people of Hamilton and of the neighbourhood. 

After a hasty lunch at the hotel, we drove with Mrs. Bar- 
nardiston and one or two other friends to the Gibbs Hill 



436 



GIBBS HI LI LIGHTHOUSE. 



lighthouse. At Warwick Camp we stopped for a short time, but 

could not remain long 

enough to partake of 

tea, to which we were 

hospitably invited, the 

day being so stormy 

and the twilight coming 

on apace. We reached 

the lighthouse just as 

the keeper had lighted 

the lamps, and were 

nearly blown away at 

the door while waiting 

to ascend. The light 

is very powerful, and 

has done good service 



in saving many a ship 
from destruction. It 
rises to a height of 362 
feet above the sea, and 
is visible at a distance of 
25 miles. 

The wind on our re- 
turn journey was even 
more violent than it had 
been earlier in the after- 
noon, and we were glad to 
find ourselves once more 
back again in Hamilton. 
Getting across Grassy Bay 
to the yacht was a matter 





THE SAND HILLS. 437 

of some difficulty, for it was now blowing a perfect hurri- 
cane; and even in this comparatively sheltered spot the 
waves were short and steep and somewhat dangerous to a 
small boat. 

Friday., December yth. — At an early hour this morning 
the doctor came to me with a grave face, and announced 
that one of the stewards, who had been ailing for some 
days, was, he feared, seriously ill with fever, and that he 
thought the sooner he was sent to the hospital the better. 
The Admiral shortly afterwards came on board, and thinking 
that it might prove to be a case of dengue, or yellow-fever, he 
advised us to postpone our proposed afternoon-party of to- 
morrow. This was not only a great disappointment, but it 
involved considerable, trouble, the means of rapid communi- 
cation in these somewhat scattered islands not being easy 
or numerous. However, there was no alternative; so with 
great reluctance we set to work to write and telegraph and 
despatch messengers on horseback to. everybody to whom 
we had already sent invitations. The weather was still so 
bad that the regatta, which was to have taken place in the 
afternoon, had to be put off; which fact afforded us an 
excuse for our own alteration of plans, and enabled us to 
avoid causing unnecessary alarm by mentioning the real cause 
of the postponement ; for at the slightest suspicion of fever 
the Bermudian becomes nervous, having suffered severely on 
several occasions from terrible epidemics, in consequence of 
the quarantine regulations having been imperfectly enforced 
or altogether evaded. 

In the afternoon Tom and I went to a most interesting- 
part of the islands, called the Sand Hills. One might 
almost call them sand seas, for they would speedily engulf 
anything that might come within the range of their in- 
fluence. We could see plainly how the sand, driven before 
the fierce gale, had buried trees, houses, and cottages in its 



438 HUNGR Y BA V. 



terrible onward march, covering everything as with a lava 
torrent of irresistible power. It was most curious to look 
down the chimneys of cottages, and on to the projecting 
tops of trees, which had thus been buried by the sand- 
storm. 

From Spanish Bock, which commands an extensive view 
over the sea and of the partially submerged reefs, we went on 
to Hungry Bay, on the south shore, where the rocks are 
heaped up in wild confusion, and where the coast is full of 
openings and holes and coves made by the ever-surging ocean, 
the colour of which is sometimes, bright green and sometimes 
deep blue. 

We were to have dined at the Admiral's to-night ; but 
the steward's illness caused us to hesitate as to the prudence of 
so doing. The invalid was sent ashore to the hospital during 
the day in charge of the doctor, who, on his return, informed, 
us that his opinion as to the fever being of an infectious kind 
had been fully confirmed, and that he had accordingly tele- 
graphed to the Admiral to inform him that it would be better 
not to run the risk of entertaining us at dinner, as we knew 
that if the report got abroad that there was a suspected case 
of fever on board the yacht, it would cause quite a scare all over 
the island. I thought it strange that we had had no direct com- 
munication in reply from Sir John Commerel ; but although 
we were all ready dressed and prepared to start, we decided 
-that it would be better to remain on board, and to improvise a 
dinner, which we were just about to commence, when a message 
arrived from the shore to the effect that the Admiral's carriage 
was still waiting for us. Tom, astonished at this news, 
went off at once, but on reaching the shore found that 
the carriage had just gone away ; and it being quite im- 
possible to procure another vehicle without considerable delay, 
he returned on board the yacht. The next day we had the 
annoyance of hearing that our host had waited dinner fifty 



BERMUDA YACHTS. 439 



minutes for us ; although it was owing to no fault of ours that 
the misunderstanding had arisen. 

Saturday, December 8th. — This morning we received a 
telegram from the hospital to the effect that there was nothing 
the matter with Foy beyond a chill and a sore throat ; so 
that it was evident that all our trouble in regard to the party 
had been in vain, although we could not help feeling that it 
was better to have erred on the safe side. Knowing how 
great was the disappointment that had been felt by people 
who had looked forward to visiting the ' Sunbeam,' we now 
took almost an equal amount of trouble to that which we had 
had yesterday, in order to inform them all once more that we 
should be delighted to see them, though the weather was still 
too rough for the postponed regatta to take place. This we 
greatly regretted, as we should have liked to have seen the 
various specimens of Bermuda boats racing. The match 
which had been arranged between representatives of the crew 
of the flagship and of the ' Sunbeam ' would also have been 
very amusing and exciting. Both sides were confident of 
victory, our own people especially ; although our opponents 
would of course have had a great advantage over us in being 
able to select a crew from between six or seven hundred 
men instead of from twenty-eight only. 

The grand yacht race which takes place on the occasion 
of the annual regatta is quite one of the events of the year 
in Bermuda. The yachts themselves are of a build peculiar 
to these islands, and carry an enormous spread of canvas 
when racing. I was assured that one yacht, of less than 5 
tons, and only 16 ft. long, carried a mast 44 ft. high, a boom 
SS2 ft- long* a bowsprit 19 ft. long, and a spinnaker-boom 
25 ft. long; so that when running before the wind, her 
canvas actually measured 58^ ft. from side to side. The 
' dinghys ' are also wonderful little craft, some of them, not 
more than 10 ft. in length, carrying masts between 25 



44Q 



YACHT RACE. 




and 30 ft. long, bowsprits 2 ft. longer than the keel, and 
booms 21 ft. in length. It may be imagined, therefore, at 

how great a speed these small craft 
dash through the water, their var- 
nished sides and snowy canvas glit- 
illf" tering in the bright sunshine, and form- 

ing a picture of inexpressible grace and 
beauty. I fancy that the merest neo- 
phyte in boat-sailing in general, might 
become enthusiastic when witnessing a 
race between these well-managed boats 
in the beautiful waters of the Ber- 
mudas. I was assured that those in 
charge of the boats occasionally get so 
excited that they run serious risks by 
carrying too much canvas, and that 
not unfrequently several of the craft 
capsize and go down in the course 
of a contest. But their crews are 
invariably good swimmers ; and it 
has been said that ' the sudden 
subsidence of a boat is in- 
variably followed by the ap- 






CORAL REEF. 441 



pearance of six brown burnt corks on the surface of the 
water ' ; by which graceful figure of speech the heads of the 
crew, rising from their sudden immersion, are referred to. 

I was somewhat amused to-day, when making inquiries as 
to the best way of getting out to the reef to see the corals, at 
being asked by a young lady : ' What do you want to see the 
coral for ? It is not worth looking at. It is only fit for making 
houses with ; I never think of coral in any other light than that.' 
True it is that not only in Bermuda itself, but in the whole 
group of islands, the houses are built of coralline limestone, 
sawn out into blocks, the material being quite soft enough 
when fresh to be treated in this manner. It soon hardens 
by exposure to the air, when it presents a beautifully white 
and slightly polished surface, impervious to wind and water 
alike. 

Sunday, December gth. — A fine morning, although a strong 
breeze was still blowing. We waited somewhat impatiently for 
our pilot, who had faithfully promised yesterday to be with us 
at 6.30 this morning, and had just given up all hope of taking 
the yacht across to Hamilton to-day, when, with true ' Ber- 
mudian ' unpunctuality, the pilot arrived at 7.45, with no 
other excuse than that ' My carriage was late, sir ; and on 
Saturday nights one is alwaj^s inclined very much for sleep.' 
We steamed quickly across the bay and moored alongside the 
wharf, inside the camber, once more. The morning was so 
clear and bright and sunny that, in spite of the strong wind, 
I should have liked to stay on deck all the time ; but I was 
unfortunately far too ill to leave my cabin or to accompany 
the rest of the party to the very pretty little dockyard church, 
where I understand that a short service of an hour was ex- 
cellently well conducted by Dr. Penning, the Bector, who also 
preached a short but eloquent sermon, admirably adapted to a 
congregation composed principally of soldiers, sailors, and 
marines. Tom returned quite delighted, saying that it was 

3 h 



442 



ARGONA UTsE. 



one of the most impressive dockyard services which he had 
ever heard anywhere. 

On their way back from church the children discovered 
some ' Portuguese men-of-war,' which had been blown up 
by the recent gales, together with a heap of Sargasso weed, 
into a corner of the dock. Poor wee things ; the waves 
had behaved very badly to their fragile forms, having torn 

off some of then blue 
and mauve feelers, 
and over-inflated their 
bodies with air, so that 
their slender sails did 
not show to the fullest 
advantage. Blue and 
mauve would not per- 
haps appear to form 
a pretty mixture ; but 
Nature has skilfully 
blended them upon her 
palette, and the gra- 
dations from delicate 
mother-of-pearl to the 
deeper hues are ten- 
derly harmonised, the 
result being extremely 
beautiful. Mr. Pritchett, who in all his travels had never 
before met with these interesting creatures, was delighted 
with their loveliness even in death, and made an interest- 
ing sketch of some of them. The argonauta are curious 
and apparently capricious little objects. Like their name- 
sakes, the discoverers of old, they find their way, or are 
taken by the love of adventure, into every corner of the 
civilised and uncivilised world. I have found them looking 
very dilapidated and sorry for themselves, after a long and 




ill" 



PORTUGUESE MAN-OF-WAR 






ARGONAUTjE IN A STORM. 443. 



tempestuous voyage in the Gulf Stream, on the coast of the 
stormy Shetland Islands ; and on various parts of the English 
coast, after a heavy gale, whole fleets of them, varying from 
a quarter of an inch to three and even four inches in size, 
may be seen sailing along in all the pomp and panoply of 
brave and gay attire, with every delicate tentacle spread out 
beneath them to catch the innumerable and invisible animal- 
cula which form their food. They float onward with, if not 
exactly ' sails of sendal, ropes of pearl,' yet with their lovely 
prismatic sails, combining every tint of the rainbow, set to 
catch the breeze ; and I cannot help thinking that their 
tentacula also serve to assist their progress. Or is this 
merely fancy, and do they simply drift about on the surface 
of the ocean, the sport of the ever restless waves, driven 
wherever the wind listeth ? Directly a storm comes, it takes 
the wind out of their sails ; or, more strictly speaking, 
it obliges them to perform that operation for themselves. 
Their sails are double, and so they quickly allow them and 
their bladder-like bodies to collapse, turn up their tentacula 
quite tightly and cosily on the two orifices in their bodies, so 
as to make all taut below, and then sink a few inches beneath 
the surface of the sea into comparatively calm water, and 
remain quietly there till the storm is past. Occasionally, 
however, they are caught unawares, before they have had 
time to furl their tiny sails ; for I have seen them with their 
bladders inflated to such an extent that they look as if they 
must burst, as they hopelessly and helplessly drifted, at 
the mercy of the winds and waves. In the Tropics the 
argonautce, like everything else in those delightful regions, are 
more fully developed than is the case elsewhere, both in size 
and in colour. I never shall forget one small fleet of them 
which we met one evening in the South Pacific, in 1876. 
They were all of large growth, and having captured more 
sunbeams than usual for the decoration of their sails, had 



THE DOCKYARD. 



converted them into prismatic colours of the most exquisite 
hues. It was just before sunset, ' the hour when daylight 
dies, and sunbeams melt into the silent seas.' The surface of 
the water was scarcely ruffled by the light air of a very faint 
and almost expiring trade-wind. The vast ocean looked 
like one immense sheet of opal, with even more fire and 
change of colour than that lovely and ever-changing stone 
itself; while on the bosom of the deep floated this fairy 
fleet of fragile craft, of every conceivable rainbow-hue, in 
striking contrast with the brilliant tones of a sunset, such 
as one can only see in the Tropics. As we gazed, it was 
almost difficult to believe that we had not been suddenly 
wafted to some strange land, far away from this prosaic world 
of ours. The fairy-scene too soon vanished from our view; 
but it will remain graven in our minds for aye. The brief 
twilight was absorbed in the effulgence of a glorious full 
moon, the sunlight tints faded from the sky, and our fairy 
little fleet became ' like craft of silver, sailing on a lake of 
azure blue.' 

It was too rough to row round, and as I was too weak to 
walk to the Barnardiston's to lunch, Tom, who was particu- 
larly anxious that I should go, had a very comfortable chair 
arranged on two boat-hooks for me, and some of the sailors 
carried me — a most simple and yet convenient mode of 
locomotion. 

Our way led right through the dockyard, which bears a 
strong family resemblance to all the other dockj^ards which 
I have elsewhere seen — Malta more especially,, perhaps. 
Outside, the road ran between Great Sound on the one side 
and the broad Atlantic on the other, and was sufficiently 
breezy. The air was fresh and bracing, and it was difficult to 
understand why this climate should be so relaxing as it un- 
doubtedly is to European constitutions. No one who remains 
here for a long time together seems to keep quite up to the 



LABOURERS' DWELLINGS. 



445 



mark. On the other hand, the islands have been spared, on 
the whole, the scourge of violent epidemics, although they 
have not been entirely exempt from them. We passed a neat- 
looking Sailors' Home, built on the crest of a neck of land, 
where the edifice catches every breeze and commands extensive 
views on all sides. This institution, which is comfortably 
furnished, and well supplied with books, newspapers, and 
periodicals, is thoroughly appreciated by the sailors. Close 




BACK OF THE COTTAGE 



by are several rows of cottages, occupied by the dockyard- 
labourers. How their English compeers would envy them 
their cosy little dwelling-places ! I should not mind living 
in one of these snug cabooses myself, with their white coral- 
covered walls, trim little verandahs, and neat garden-plots, 
full of what in England would be greenhouse and hothouse 
flowers. 

We met several friends at ' The Cottage ' ; but I was com- 
pelled to rest instead of accompanying the other members of 
the party on their expedition to Boaz and Somerset Islands, 
and to the cemetery and lighthouse. 

Captains Victor Montagu, distance, and Poe dined on 



446 THE 'NORTHAMPTON.' 

board the yacht ; but I did not attempt to join them until ten 
o'clock, by which time the storm had completely disappeared ; 
the moon was shining brightly, and I found the whole party 
sitting on deck, chatting, and sipping coffee, and smoking 
cigarettes. 

Monday, December loth.— I awoke at five, feeling rather 
better than yesterday, but still far from well. It was no good 
thinking about it, however, for there' was much to be done hi 
the way of getting ready for departure, the weather having 
become fine, and it being highly desirable to leave these 
storm-beaten islands before the arrival of another hurricane. 
The storms are distinctly local in character. It often happens 
that ships coming both from the north and from the south 
report having encountered much better weather at sea than 
they find on reaching Bermuda. Yesterday evening the 
gale was far worse at Hamilton than it was on this side of 
the bay, although the distance between the two places is so 
small. 

A boat from the ' Northampton ' came for us at half-past 
nine ; and we went on board the flagship, which I had not 
been able to visit before, although Tom had minutely inspected 
her last week. She is a fine ship; but was of course somewhat 
in disorder after her recent unfortunate accident, and in con- 
sequence of the preparations which were being made for the 
reception of 600 tons of coal this afternoon. Her coal-carry- 
ing capacity is twice the quantity just named ; but the last 
400 tons have a tendency to make her plunge so heavily, even 
in a moderate sea, that the full pabulum of ' black diamonds ' 
is rarely taken on board. The whole of the shot and shell 
had been removed from the racks ; nearly 600 tons of mate- 
rials and gear had been disembarked, and preparations were 
being made to take out her guns — weighing another 500 tons 
— when she was happily towed off the rocks, without having 
sustained any serious damage. The impending court-martial, 



THE 'CANADA: 447 



which begins to-morrow, throws a gloom over everything ; 
and I am not very sorry that we are going away before the 
trial begins ; for it is a most unpleasant business. I only 
hope that the Court may feel more inclined to dwell on the 
good work done in getting the ship off so quickly and with so 
very little damage, than on the unfortunate mistake made in 
allowing her to drift on shore. The ' Northampton ' is a 
double-screw, iron, armour-plated ship, of 7630 tons and 
6070 horse-power, carrying 12 guns, and is the flagship of 
the North American and "West Indian stations. Admiral Sir 
Edmund Commerell, K.C.B., V.C., is in command, assisted by 
Captain Noel Digby, and many other officers, several of whom 
are old acquaintances of ours, whom we have met in various 
parts of the world. 

From the ' Northampton ' we crossed the breakwater ; 
and getting into the gig that had been sent to meet us, we 
went on board the ' Canada,' a ship the name of which has 
been made familiar to us all of late from the fact of her having 
been the home of another of our sailor Princes, Prince George 
of Wales, who is worthily qualifying himself for the profes- 
sion so dear to all Englishmen. The ' Canada ' is a com- 
posite screw-corvette of 2380 tons and 2430 horse-power, 
carrying 10 guns. Captain Durrant, who commands her, 
kindly took us into his own cabin, a charming room, comfort- 
ably fitted up, the walls being lined with some sort of newly 
invented cream-coloured composition, like plaster, which keeps 
dry in the wettest weather : a great desideratum, especially 
in an iron ship. To reach his private cabin we had to pass 
through his dining-room, where six middies (Prince George 
of Wales being one of the number) were hard at work at 
their six-monthly examination, a most important event for 
them. The examination papers are sent out in sealed packets 
direct from the Admiralty, and are only opened in the 
presence of the lads themselves. 



448 



GUNS AND TORPEDOES. 



There . were a great many other things in addition to 
the captain's cabin to interest us on board the ' Canada.' 
We specially admired some new Armstrong guns, a little 
over fourteen feet long, the shape and general appearance 
of which, brightly polished as they had been by the appli- 
cation of kerosene oil, can only be appropriately described by 
the favourite American adjective ' elegant.' It can scarcely 
be imagined how great a difference the extra foot or two 
in length makes in the appearance of the guns. Then 
there was a wonderful 

Vavasseur gun, fitted ■ 

with ingenious hydrau- --> - -- "' :, ^:~. , - rrzA; "~ ^- ^ - ^-r 

lie machinery for the pur- 
pose of preventing a too 
sudden recoil after firing. 




Some excellent prac- 
tice was made with 
it, which we watched 
from the poop. The 
gunnery - lieutenant 
informed us that he 
considered the appar- 
2^>- -. a tus quite invaluable, 

: ~ " and that he only 

wished that all broad- 
side guns were fitted 
with it. Two White- 
head torpedoes were 
also discharged for 
our e dific ation — one 
at a stationary target, and one at a small keg towed slowly 
past the ship by a boat. A white galvanised iron tube, about 



TORPEDO PRACTICE. 449 

fourteen feet long, looking something like a large fish, was 
seen to take a sudden header from the ship's side, through 
one of the ports on the lower deck, which aperture we had 
been watching intently in anxious expectation for some mi- 
nutes. Diving but a short distance beneath the surface of 
the sea, the torpedo darted along, swift and straight as an 
arrow from a bow, the bubbles of air, as they escaped in its 
rapid progress, leaving a track like a huge sea-serpent behind 
it. At a distance of about 150 yards the fish-like explosive 
suddenly rose to the surface, burst into flames, and then took 
a sudden turn backwards, so sharp that it almost returned 
on its own course. The second torpedo behaved in very 
much the same manner, only varied by its making a curious 
sort of deflection at the end of its flight, so that, instead of 
coming right back on its track, it described a curve in the 
shape of a sickle. Torpedoes are formidable but uncertain 
weapons ; and it can scarcely be safe to depend on them 
absolutely at a greater distance than from fifty to a hundred 
yards. At that range they would be extremely valuable in 
warfare ; since the knowledge that a vessel had several of 
them on board would undoubtedly tend very much to prevent 
an enemy attempting to board her, or approach at too close 
quarters. 

After bidding our kind host farewell, and with many 
mutual good wishes for pleasant voyages, we went on board 
the ' Tenedos,' which was lying just astern the 'Canada.' 
The 'Tenedos' is a screw-corvette of 1760 tons and 2030 
horse-power, carrying 12 guns. She has been commanded by 
Captain Charles F. Fane since 1880, and has made some very 
interesting cruises. She experienced terrible weather recently 
on the voyage from Halifax : her decks being covered with 
snow and ice, and her ropes so frozen that it was almost im- 
possible to move them. She also encountered terrible gales 
as she got into warmer latitudes ; and was for three days 

3 1 



45° 



CRUISE OF THE < TENEDOS: 



hove-to in a storm not far from these islands, waiting for a 
pilot. Captain Fane has recently been cruising off the coast 
of Labrador and Newfoundland, with the object of protecting 
our fishing interests in those waters. He states that the 
salmon-fishing has already been nearly destroyed by the ex- 
cessive netting ; and that in his opinion a man-of-war, or 
perhaps a gunboat or two, should cruise along the coast once 
or twice a year, and seize the nets that have been illegally 
spread across the rivers, at the same time taking steps to 
severely punish the poachers whenever practicable. Strict 
laws have been passed against netting ; but there is nobody 




to enforce them, and directly the man-of war disappears 
in the offing, no time is lost in resuming the nefarious 
practices. 

As we were rowing back into the harbour, after leaving 
the ' Tenedos,' we met Mrs. Barnardiston coming out in the 
steam-launch. We could only shout our farewells and sincere 
thanks for all her kindness, instead of exchanging a warm 
grasp of the hand, which would have been far more satisfac- 
tory. Then we saw the dear old ' Sunbeam ' turning round 
and slowly steaming out from her moorings, the band of the 
flagship playing in her honour, and everybody on board the 



CHARMING QUARTERS. 



45' 



'Northampton,' the 'Garnet,' the 'Irresistible,' and all the 
other ships in the camber — even the dockyard men — stop- 
ping work to look at her, and perhaps keenly wishing they 
were on board the graceful craft that ' walked the waters like a 
thing of life,' to say nothing of her being ' homeward bound.' 
Notwithstanding her denuded state, with her top-gallant yards 
and top-masts on deck, and only her storm-canvas bent, she 
still looked beautiful, as her bow gently cleaved the smooth 
surface of the water, like the soft breast of an eider duck in 
some calm Norwegian Fiord. 

On reaching the shore we entered the one carriage which 
Ireland Island boasts, and drove through the dockyard and on 




,-:.>\^^^P^^r.-;\ ^sO^s^f* % 



to the Commissioner's house, now used as officers' quarters 
for the Marines. Charming quarters they are too. Major and 
Mrs. Sharp, old friends of Mr. Pritchett, received us most 
kindly and showed us all over the buildings, which are 
encircled by a large verandah, so that there is always a cool 
corner and a breeze to be found somewhere, commanding a 
delightful and ever-changing view of many-coloured sea, sky, 
and land, diversified by rocks, reefs, and wrecks. The sur- 
roundings of the house are of a rural character, and we came 
away laden with a nice little bag of fresh eggs ; while we saw 
lieaps of poultry of all kinds, pigs, goats, and cows, to say 



452 



the ' fantome: 



nothing of a picturesque view under the old tree up to the 
fort, with what looked like a big gun on the top thereof. 

When we reached the harbour again we went on board the 
' Irresistible,' where the officers and crew of the ' Fantome ' 
are at present quartered, while their own ship is in the floating- 
dock. The ' Fantome ' looked very curious inside the huge 
structure, with her three masts just showing above its some- 
what unwieldy looking sides. I was reminded of a story I 
heard of somebody who, on seeing another vessel under similar 
circumstances, exclaimed, ' Ah ! that is the ship I should like to 
go to sea in, she looks so nice, and comfortable, and roomy.' I 
don't think that anybody would remain long of that opinion if 
he really tried the experiment on the broad ocean. I believe 
that the hollow bottom of the dock has been treated with or con- 
tains some insalubrious mixture of white lead and another com- 
position, which has been the means of killing or of invaliding 
more unfortunate men who have been engaged at work on board 
her than would be easily credited. The ' Fantome ' has just 
returned from Hayti ; and although her people cannot be said 
exactly to have had a good time of it, they do not appear to 
have fared quite so badly as it was feared that they might 
be doing, when a prolonged interval recently elapsed with- 
out any tidings being received of them. 

From Colon one of the officers had 
brought back a honey-bear— an intelli- 
gent little brute, about the size of a mon- 
goose, with something of 



the same shape and manners 
as that animal, but with, if 
possible, more engaging man- 
ners. He would lick his mas- 
ter's fingers, put his arms 
round his neck, and turn up 
his long thin nose, which 




HONEY BEAR 



FINAL PREPARATIONS. 453 

rather resembled that of an opossum, in the drollest way 
when he wanted to coax his proprietor, or to get some con- 
densed milk and eggs — his favourite delicacies — or anything 
he specially liked to eat. Nobody seemed to know exactly to 
what species he belonged, or his proper status in the animal 
world. He was what Artemus Ward called ' an amoosin' 
little cuss,' with not much of the ' bear ' about him — at 
all events as regards his manners. The ' Irresistible,' on 
board which he and his master are at present residing, is a 
wooden hulk of the third class, sent out here to serve as a 
depot ship. 

While we were visiting the honey-bear Tom had gone off 
to the yacht, which was moored to a buoy just astern of the 
* Canada ' and ' Tenedos,' outside the camber, in order to see 
that all was really ready for our immediate departure ; for 
there was now a fair breeze blowing, of which he was anxious 
to take advantage. On our arrival on board we found him 
in a great state of mind ; and no wonder : for although 
Bermudian unpunctuality is proverbial, I do not think that 
he had until now quite realised the fact that we could not 
possibly sail until two or three hours after the time originally 
fixed, and that, owing to the wind having died away almost to 
a flat calm, it was becoming only too probable that we should 
not succeed in getting outside the reef before dark. The fresh 
provisions had arrived alongside ; but unfortunately the cook 
had sent two men off to meet them, who had not yet returned. 
After a considerable amount of whistling, and the despatch of 
sundry messengers, they appeared, together with the washing, 
and we thought we should really be able to make a start ; 
when, to our horror, at the very last moment, it was discovered 
that the doctor, who had gone over to Hamilton in the morning 
on ambulance business, had not yet returned, although it was 
now past one o'clock, and we were to have sailed at eleven. 
Just as we were beginning to despair of seeing him again on 



454 



FAREWELL TO BERMUDA. 



this side -of the Atlantic, he arrived, looking very hot and 
tired, having, in the first place, found that his business 
occupied him a great deal longer than he had expected; in 
the second, that it was rather difficult to procure a boat 
to bring him across the bay; and, in the third, that no 
amount of whistling would induce the wind to spring up 
and waft him over, in anything like reasonable time, to 
where the ' Sunbeam ' was lying. 




FAREWELL TO BERMUDA 



At length our party was complete, and we really began to 
move ahead, exchanging salutes and signals of farewell with 
the various ships which we passed, carrying with us many 
messages and good wishes from those who were 

Loved, yet left behind ; 

and perhaps exciting a few sorrowful although not unkindly 
reflections on the part of those who were thinking lovingly of 
many dear ones at home, and would have been glad to find 
themselves, as we were, homeward-bound, with a prospect of 



SIGNALLING. 455 



spending a Happy New Year, if not a Merry Christmas, in 
Old England. 

Four-letter signals and three -letter signals were hoisted in 
such quick succession, that it was necessary for all engaged in 
repeating and replying to the messages to have their wits 
about them, in order to read them off quickly enough. The 
deck looked quite animated; everybody being interested in 
watching the ships and wondering what signal was coming 
next. Two men were at the halliards, two at the locker con- 
taining the flags, till every single flag was out and the contents 
of the locker were strewn all over the deck. The flag-ship and 
' Garnet ' ran up the signal B.B.D. = ' Goodbye,' D. C. L. V. 
= 'Happy,' C. P. B. D. = ' Christmas,' B.Q.K. = 'pleasant 
voyage,' and B.B.D. = ' adieu,' to which we replied B. S.J. = 
' Thanks,' B. B. D. = ' Farewell.' 

All this time we were steaming quietly out, under the 
shelter of the islands and reefs ; but when we began to emerge 
from their friendly shelter the story was very different, and 
not nearly so agreeable. The swell from the recent gales had 
not by any means subsided ; and the long heavy rollers, which 
broke in lines of white foam on the reefs near the shore, caused 
11s to roll and pitch in a manner which disturbed the equili- 
brium of almost everybody and everything on board : for the 
rough weather came upon us somewhat unexpectedly. The 
poor pilot was anxious to possess a copy of one of my books, 
but was too shy to ask for it until the last moment. He must 
have had rather a bad time hanging on to the side, waiting for 
me to write his name in the volume — a work of some difficulty, 
under the circumstances. As the pilot-boat rowed away we 
could only just catch a glimpse of the head of the man who 
was steering, and of those of his two mates, who were 
pulling at the oars, ere they disappeared from sight in the 
trough of the big waves, through the passage between the 
breakers at the entrance to St. George's Sound. It was in- 



456 



HOMEWARD BOUND. 



expressibly grand to watch the heavy swell of the mighty 
ocean, covered with white foam, as it dashed and surged 
against and over the coral reefs and cruel sharp-pointed 
rocks, which had doubtless been the last resting-place of 
many a gallant ship and brave man before the useful light- 
house of St. David's was built. 

I do not wish to weary the reader with painful details, 
and will simply say, that from illness and sea-sickness, my 

life on the passage to 
the Azores was full 
of suffering. This 
remark is only made 
in anticipation, and 
I need not dwell on. 
the dark side of the 
picture. 

We are now fairly 
off, on another "long 
voyage ; 1 804 knots 
to Fayal, in the 
Azores; 2918 knots 
to Plymouth. We 
are provisioned for a 
month ; but hope to 
accomplish our voy- 
age in two or three 
weeks, if we have any luck and are fortunate enough to 
escape a spell of bad weather. It is to be earnestly hoped 
that we shall not have to encounter many contrary winds or 
calms; for we have only 25 tons of coal on board: rather a 
short allowance for such a long voyage. Tom does not, how- 
ever, like to interfere with the buoyancy of the yacht, or to 
cause her to be too deep in the water, with the chance of 
encountering heavy gales in the North Atlantic, about Christ- 




\ 



PILOT HANGIXft ON" 



BETTER WEATHER. 



457 



mas time. As the night advanced the sea moderated and 
the weather improved somewhat ; and 

Before morning's light 

Pierced through the night, 

We shook her sails to the wind. 

With a freshening breeze, 

We walked the seas ; 

And the land sank lower and lower. 




3 k 




CHAPTER XIX. 

BERMUDA TO THE AZORES. 

Swiftly, swiftly flew the ship, 
Yet she sailed softly, too : 

Sweetly, sweetly blew the breeze. 



Tuesday, December nth. 

TPHE weather was very stormy, and we encountered a heavy 
J- head-swell. We were the whole day under storm-canvas 
of various kinds, sometimes having two, and sometimes three 
reefs in the mainsail, but always knocking about hi the most 
unpleasant manner, to the great discomfort of everybody. 

Wednesday, December 12th. — The weather this morning 
was very promising ; and all the storm-canvas was taken in 
and replaced by the ordinary cruising sails. At 10 a.m. the 
wind fell light ; at noon it was a calm ; at 3 p.m. we com- 
menced steaming against a heavy swell from the N.W., which 
made our progress through the water a most disagreeable and 



SAILING WITH THE GALE. 459 

disturbing process for some hours. At 4 p.m. we passed a 
sailing-ship on the starboard beam. Towards night a fresh 
breeze sprang up, and we were able to cease steaming. 

Thursday, December 1 3///. — I could not sleep ; and at 
about four o'clock, being thoroughly roused by the moonlight 
which flooded our cabin, I went on deck, where I was quite 
repaid for my trouble. The gallant little ship was cleaving 
her way over the billows, tearing and hissing through the 
seething foam at the rate of some ten or twelve knots an 
hour, as the breeze slackened or freshened. Every sail 
that could be carried was set; and all were bathed in the 
glorious golden light of the full moon. It was one of those 
sights that are not seen too often in an ordinary lifetime, 
and one that I think is almost more fully appreciated when 
witnessed in solitude. 

Soon after six I again went on deck to see the sunrise, 
which was unusually splendid, even for these latitudes. It 
was a lovely morning, and top-masts and all fine-weather 
spars were being sent up aloft. The top-gallant yard was 
about to be crossed, when the swell increased so much that 
the attempt had to be abandoned. At noon our run was 
190 miles, and we were in lat. 33.37 N., long. 54. 36 W. 
Distance to Fayal, 1292 miles. In the afternoon the weather 
was squally, with occasional bright gleams of sunshine. I 
wished it had been possible to sail or row alongside the yacht 
in a boat ; but the sea was altogether too rough for such an 
amusement. A big steamer, or a balloon, would have afforded 
the only means of observing the ' Sunbeam ' with comfort, as 
she scudded along before the gale, under double-reefed fore- 
top-sail, standing-jib, foresail, main and mizen topsails. I am 
sure she must have looked lovely, tossing on the top of, or half 
cutting through the angry waves, in the ever- varying light, 
caused by alternate changes from storm to sunshine. The 
atmospheric effects were marvellous in their diversity. A 



460 WATERSPOUTS. 



heavy squall on one side, a bright ray of sun on another ; 
and not far off some black clouds, so low on the horizon, 
and with such a curious corkscrew-like appearance, that one 
could almost imagine that they had descended with the 
intention of inviting the ocean to join them in their gambols, 
and were asking the winds to give the waves a similar spiral 
twist upwards, so as to enable the portion of the sea im- 
mediately beneath them to rise and meet them half-way, and 
so, by uniting their forces, to produce a waterspout. Un- 
fortunately for those who had never yet seen this phenomenon 
of nature, the necessary combination was not completed on 
the present occasion; so we missed the wonderful spectacle 
of the two cones, one from above, and one from below, 
like two vast funnels, whirling round and round with equal 
velocity, and in close juxtaposition, until at last they unite, 
and form a column very much like an hour-glass hi shape. 
Woe betide the unfortunate vessel which is overtaken or met 
by one of these swift, ghostly columns ! The largest ship-of- 
war would almost inevitably go down at once, if she encoun- 
tered the watery mass > and not a trace of her, or of her 
living freight, would remain. 

In certain latitudes, where, owing to the circular ten- 
dency of the winds, these curious freaks of nature are of 
comparatively frequent occurrence, merchant-vessels are 
recommended to carry small guns (cannon) in order to fire 
at and disperse the waterspouts from a distance, before 
they are near enough to do any harm. These guns must 
always be kept loaded ; for waterspouts move with the speed 
of lightning, or rather of the hurricane-like gust that drives 
them along. 

Friday, December 14th. — At six there was a fearful deluge 
of rain, which flooded the decks and filled all the boats, 
except those that were turned bottom upwards. It especially 
annoyed and disquieted some of our live-stock, including the 



SARGASSO SEA. 461 



opossum and the monkey, who inhabited one of the cutters, 
and who were as thoroughly drenched — poor little beasts — 
as though they had been dragged through the sea, wooden 
houses and all. The rain-storm did not last long, however, 
and the day was not at all bad — rather the reverse, in fact. 
Between heavy squalls we had long intervals of bright, really 
hot sunshine. Sometimes we were progressing at the rate 
of twelve knots, sometimes of eight ; sometimes the sea was 
rough, sometimes smooth ; sometimes we were lying at a 
moderate angle, sometimes at an acute one ; sometimes we 
had many sails set, sometimes very few. Still, to whatever 
extent the state of affairs in these respects might vary, 
there was always a strong south-westerly wind blowing us 
on our direct course. It was really glorious work ; and my 
only regret was that I was not well enough to enjoy it. 
Tom thinks that we are on the perimeter or edge of another 
circular storm, and is full of precaution and anxious looks ; 
but for the moment it is all very delightful. Our run at 
noon to-day was 190 miles under sail, exactly the same as 
that of yesterday ; a coincidence which I have never known to 
occur before, in all my yachting experience. 

"We have been passing through, or rather sailing over the 
surface of, the Sargasso Sea during the last few days, and 
have noticed great quantities of gulf-weed of various kinds 
floating about, both in small pieces and in large masses. We 
have not, however, seen any of the solid acres of weed which 
some writer? describe. The varieties of sargasso are most 
interesting in themselves, and still more so for the different 
types of marine animal life— some of them quite unique — 
which live and breathe and have their being in these vast 
marine meadows. Almost all the specimens which we have 
fished up have belonged to five varieties only, and in every 
case they were full of little crabs, so exactly of the colour of the 
weed that it was impossible to distinguish them at first. The 



402 



RAINBOWS. 



sargasso was also covered with tiny plants of various kinds of 
Bryopsis, the berries being often coated with small corals, 
•sometimes with false-coral or Flustra. I do hope that we 
shall see a really extensive floating mass of the weed before 
we reach the Azores. 

During the afternoon the squalls became more frequent 
and the wind stronger. We saw numerous rainbows, the 
brilliant hues of which contrasted grandly with the some- 
times almost black sea, covered with surging ' white horses,' 
rising against a background of inky clouds. Just as one ex- 
ceptionally hard squall was passing away, the effect was par- 
ticularly beautiful. The rainbow was so near that it seemed 

to form an arch 
over the yacht, 
its bright rays 
touching the sea 
on either side, 
so close to us 
that the rain- 
drops on the 
deck were quite 
dazzling in their 
brilliancy ; and 
I felt almost in- 
clined to run and 
pick up the glit- 
tering jewels as 
they lay in the 
sunlight. We 
had a sublime, although stormy sunset ; masses and masses 
of black clouds piled up, like Pelion on Ossa, against a lurid 
red sky verging on the colour of that seen in a desert sand- 
storm ; while a heavy black squall, coming up swiftly with 
the wind, looked almost like a waterspout. 




SUNRISE. 



From four to eight o'clock we sailed 44 miles. At nine I 
went to the stern, where Tom was at the wheel, to see the 
long bright luminous track we were leaving behind us, as we 
scudded swiftly before the gale. The swelling sails seemed as 
if they must tear the ropes from the blocks through which 
they were rove, so hard were they pressed, and so strained by 
the ever-increasing wind. We then went right into the bows, 
to see how her stem was cutting through the water, sending 
out two great luminous waves on either hand, which ran high 
up the vessel's sides, before they mingled with the ocean 
again, and their disturbing circles were distributed over illimit- 
able space. 

Saturday, December i$th. — At six a.m. I went on deck to 
look at one of the finest sunrises that I have seen for some 
time past, and was well repaid for my trouble, notwithstanding 
the fact that the mornings and evenings are not by any means 
so warm now as they were in the tropics. The appearance 
jjresented by the rest of the party, as they emerged from below, 
one by one, half-asleep and rubbing their eyes, with cloaks, 
shawls, and blankets hastily thrown on to keep off the sharp, 
fresh morning breeze, reminded me of Mark Twain's familiar 
description of a sunrise on the Eighi. Although they tried 
.hard to be enthusiastic, I am not sure that all of them 
thoroughly appreciated this recurrence to the abnormally 
early hours of the tropics. 

At noon we had accomplished 243 knots. It was -very 
squally all day, with constant showers. I counted seven 
rainbows during the afternoon alone ; and there had been 
many more in the morning, some of them of the most 
extreme beauty and brilliancy : heavy clouds and passing 
showers combining to produce atmospheric effects as charm- 
ing as I have ever seen. The sunset was perfectly su- 
perb. To describe it would be almost impossible in simple 
prose. 



464 A LEAF FROM THE 'LOG: 



Half the sky 
Was roofed with clouds of rich emblazonry : 
Dark purple at the zenith, which still grew 
Down the steep west into a wondrous hue, 
Brighter than gold, even to the rent 
Where the swift sun yet paused hi his descent. 

After we had watched the after-glow fading far away, and 
thought that all its loveliness had vanished from our gaze 
like a beautiful dream, it astonished us by reappearing in a 
fresh robe of glory and magnificence, so gorgeous in its roseate 
tints, and extending so far up into the heavens, that it seemed 
almost like the effect produced by the northern lights ; or 
as if their southern sisters, jealous of their beauty, had deter- 
mined to emulate their charms. 

A little variety may be given to my narrative — to say 
nothing of the relief which will be afforded to my weary pen 
— if I append a copy of the log for the next day or two ; so 
that ' all you ladies ' (and not a few gentlemen) ' now on 
land ' may have a practical idea of how the routine life at sea 
progresses. 

3.45 a.m. — Carried away goose-neck of squaresail-boom. 
9 ,, Gybed. 

10 ,, Bolt rope of after-leech of mainsail gave way. Lowered 

sail and repaired. 
11.30 ,, Shook out second reef in mizen. 

Noon Lat. 35.22 N.Long. 46.10 W. Sail 243 knots. Distance 

to Fayal 860 miles. 
1* p.m. — Saw sailing-ship on starboard bow, standing to S.E 

3 ,, Set mainsail. 

4 , , Gybed. 

5 ,, Set main gaff- topsail, and standing and boom jibs. 
6.30 ,, Sharp squall. Lowered main topmast staysail and 

mizen. 
7 ,, Ee-set canvas. Sea smooth. 

10 ,, Hauled down main topmast staysail. 

12 ,, Hauled down jibs. 



GRAND SUNSET. 465 



Sunday, December 16th. — A bright breezy day. We had 
prayers at eleven and at six. 

7 a.m. — Saw barque astern, standing south. 

8 ,, Stowed foresail. 
8.30 ,, Stowed mainsail. 
9.30 ,, Stowed mizen. 

10.15 ,, 61 on log. Commenced, steaming. Repaired after- 
leech rope of mizen. 
11 ,, Litany. Favourable weather for steaming. 

1.30 p.m. — Set fore-staysail standing and boom jibs. 

3 ,, Crossed topgallant yard. 

4 ,, Set foresail. 

5 ,, Repaired leech rope of mizen and set the sail. 

6 ,, Prayers. Magnificent sunset. 

10 ,, Stowed topgallant sail. 

The sunset was, if possible, even grander and more ex- 
quisite than that of last night. The entire sky was suffused 
with clear orange-coloured light, fading into a delicate bluish 
green— like the green of a hedge-sparrow's plumage — while 
gorgeous masses of crimson and gold clouds gave weight and 
substance to the scene. 

Monday, December ijth. — It was raining at sunrise, though 
the barometer was high. 

9 a.m. — Set foretopsail and topgallant sail. 

11 • ,, Stowed topgallant sail ; shook out reef in mizen. 
Noon Lat. 36.57 N. Long. 38.22 W. Steam 228. 

4 p.m. — Log bitten off by fish. Stowed foretopsail, topgallant 
sail, and mizen. 

6 „ Lowered headsail and foresail. Notable similarity of 

recent barometrical readings with those of January 
T882. See Whitaker's Almanack. 

7 Sea smooth. 

At 4, when one of the men went to haul in the log, he 
nearly fell backwards off the taffrail. Instead of the resist- 
tance he expected to meet with in pulling in fathoms of line 

3^ 



466 



LOG BITTEN OFF. 




with a heavy weight at the end of it, a 
little bit of line came up at once with its 
end bitten off by what was evidently ' a 
great big fish.' How Mr. Bain's patent log 
agrees with his digestion, if he should have 
swallowed what to him must have been a 
glittering bait, we shall never know ; but it 
is certain that the greedy ' log-bolter ' has 
deprived us of a friend which has, for many 

a week past, faithfully marked for us 
our distance over the trackless ocean. 
The sunset was again magnificent, 
and cmite different in colour to that 
of last night, consisting of scarcely 
anything but the brightest reds 
and greens, shading off in parts 
almost into deep black, in others 
into the tenderest tints of green 
and blue, and in others, again, 
into brighter shades of the same 
hues. 
Tuesday, December 18th. — In the 
early morning, during a rain-squall, 
a marvellous effect was produced by 
a combination of moonlight and a 
rainbow against the clouds. 

6 a.m. — Stopped engines to repair 
circulating pump. 

7 ,, Continued steaming, 
io ,, Hands repairing rigging. 
ii , , Set foresail and standing j ib. 
12 ,, Increased head wind and 

sea. Lat. 37.41 N. ; Long. 
34.52 W. Steam 175. 
Distance to Fayal 297. 




BAD COAL. . 467 



The days are becoming terribly short; and it was very 
soon after five when, from the windows of the deck-house 
where I was lying on the sofa, I enjoyed the spectacle of 
another glorious sunset. It was almost a flat calm, and 
-we were steaming merrily along ; though how long this state 
of things will continue I know not : for we are getting very 
short of coal, and Tom's face begins to wear a somewhat 
anxious expression when he thinks how little fuel there is 
left in the bunkers, and where we are likely to be when that 
comes to an end, with only five tons of coke to fall back upon. 
The coal which we took on board at Bermuda has turned out 
so badly that all our calculations as to our steaming capabili- 
ties have been upset. Owing, I suppose, to the coal having 
been stowed in the open air, it seems to have become disin- 
tegrated and to disappear chiefly in the form of dense smoke, 
wdrich covers everything on board with blacks, and makes 
it quite impossible to keep one's hands or anything else 
clean. 

Wednesday, December igth. — In spite of the beautiful 
weather, which is perfect for everything (except sailing), and 
the good passage we are making, I seem to get steadily worse 
day after day ; till I am so weak that I can hardly crawl along 
the deck. I do not often give in ; but it is really most dis- 
heartening to suffer so much from sea-sickness, after more 
than twenty years of hard apprenticeship. How grateful I 
should be if the ' Sunbeam ' would only keep quiet for a few 
minutes ; and, oh, how glad I am to think that we may hope 
to reach Fayal to-morrow, and to enjoy the blessings of the 
land, for a few hours at all events. 

The log for to-day is as follows : 

4 a.m. — Foresail and standing jib set and taken in from time to 

time, according to the direction of the wind. 
9 ,, Weather clear and cool. 
10 ,, Light easterly winds throughout. 



SUNSET EFFECTS. 



Noon 



Lat. 38.4 N. (of Lisbon), 31.52 W. (of Greenwich). Steam. 
153. Made good 147. Distance to Fayal 155. 

3 p.m. — Passing showers, fine rainbow. 

4 ,, Foresail and jib drawing well. 

5 ,, Set boom jib and fore-staysail. 

7 ,, Hauled down foresail and boom jib. 

8 ,, Hauled down standing jib. 

You will be quite weary of hearing of the beauty of the 
sunsets ; but they have 'endless variety and seem really to 





* : 



increase in grandeur and splendour of colour every night. 
The effects, too, last so much longer than usual, and spread so 
entirely over the surface of the whole visible portion of the 
western heavens, that it would almost appear as if some new 
and strange phenomena were taking place in the celestial 
system. 






LIVING NIGHT-LIGHTS. 469 

As it became dark we had another strange spectacle to 
admire. Myriads of tiny nautilidse illumined the sea ; and 
among them sailed majestically the large umbrella-topped 
medusae, so brilliant as to look like thousands of moderator- 
lamps, floating along among the smaller lights of the night. 
It almost seemed as though they were enjoying a Feast of 
Lanterns among themselves, instead of being as usual depen- 
dent on a disturbance of the water for the opportunity of 
displaying their splendour. The effect was very strange; 
and one could almost imagine that the order of things had 
been reversed, and that we were sailing through the sky 
limong the stars, instead of on the sea, the surface of which 
was scarcely smooth enough to reflect the stellar lights. 



Lights overhead and lights underneath seem doubtfully dreaming 
Whether the day be done, whether the night may begin. 




Happy isles, 
Like those Hesperian gardens, famed of old; 
Fortunate fields, and groves, and flowery vales. 

Thursday, December 20th. 

AT six o'clock I was awakened by the announcement that 
Pico was right ahead, about fourteen miles off; Horta, 
the port of Fayal, lying at the same distance, a little more 
to the westward. The wind was fresh and fair for St. 
Michael's, and right through the Straits of Horta, between 






PICO. 47i 

Pico and Fayal, which made it rather doubtful if we should be 
able to coal in the somewhat exposed little harbour of the 
latter island. Tom, in his anxiety to profit by the favourable 
breeze, made the most of these facts, and further remarked 
that it was possible that we might get into Fayal and not be 
able to reach St. Michael's at all. To my bitter disappoint- 
ment, therefore, my cup of expected rest was dashed from 
my lips. Later on we were under the shadow of the mountain 
called Pico, standing grandly up with its head above the clouds, 
very like the Peak of Teneriffe. The shelter of the land took 
all the wind out of our sails ; and we napped about for many 
weary hours, in the course of which we had the mortification 
of seeing a pretty little barque sail past us, aided by a friendly 
current of air. In the evening we recommenced steaming, 
and having cleared the east end of Pico we picked up a 
fresh northerly breeze, too late, however, to enable us to make 
the run to St. Michael's before nightfall. 

Before starting on our present cruise we had endeavoured 
to obtain all the information procurable concerning the Azores, 
which we looked forward to visiting on our way home, and 
where we hoped to make a much longer stay than will, unfor- 
tunately, now be possible. I was somewhat surprised at the 
time to find how vague were people's ideas on the subject 
of the exact situation of the group, the number and extent 
of the islands, their climate, the nationality and character of 
the inhabitants, and other matters of interest to the intend- 
ing visitor. Although it is, of course, only necessary to turn 
to a gazetteer to solve the principal questions, it may perhaps 
save some people the trouble of doing so if I remind them 
that the Azores, Ilhas dos Acores, or Isles of Hawks, consist 
of a group of nine islands, belonging to Portugal, from which 
country they are distant about 800 miles, the*shortest route 
to England being nearly 1400 miles. They are scattered 
over a somewhat large surface of ocean, a considerable space 



472 'THE AZORES. 



intervening between Corvo, on the extreme western edge of the 
group, and St. Mary, on the east ; although the united area of 
the islands is barely iooo square miles. The islands are of 
volcanic origin, and their coasts are rugged and precipitous. 
The highest elevation is the Peak of Pico, 1 which attains an 
altitude of 7613 feet; but there are many other mountains of 
importance. The inhabitants of the Azores are of Portuguese 
origin ; though their blood appears to contain a considerable 
admixture of the negro element. The peasantry are quiet, well- 
behaved, and industrious, but superstitious to a gross extent, 
and lamentably ignorant of agriculture. The climate is moist 
but healthy ; and the variations of temperature throughout the 
year are comparatively insignificant. The principal products 
are oranges, pine-apples, bananas, grapes, various kinds of 
grain, and tobacco ; besides which the sugar-cane and coffee 
are also cultivated on a small scale. 

The early history of the islands is obscure. They have 
been regarded by some as relics of the ancient Atlantis of 
Plato, who described that island or continent as ' situated in 
front of the straits which you call the columns of Hercules,' 
and as ' larger than Libya and Asia put together.' He also 
refers to the occurrence of earthquakes and floods which over- 
whelmed Atlantis and caused it to disappear in a single day. 
It appears probable that the islands were known to the Phceni- 
cians, traces of whose presumed visits still remain in the shape 
of coins which are occasionally dug up in various parts. It is 
certain, however, that the Azores were not known to what may 
be called the modern world until late in the fourteenth or early 
in the fifteenth century, when they gradually came to be 
marked upon the maps of the period. Cabral, one of Dora 

1 Pardon the tautology : the Spaniards speak of the bridge of Alcantara, 
and cantara is the Arabic for a bridge. This is excelled, however, by the 
announcement common in Andalusian cafe's of ' Cerveza de Paliali,' meaning 
beer of pale-ale ; which pleonasm can be again matched by the French adver- 
tisement of Eau de Soda-iuater. 



-10 




31 


30 29 28 


27 26 25 




1 
CORVO 
Hosario 


1 1 1 


_ . ! [ 






'■■-' FLORES 




■ 


39 


- 




GRACIOSA 
SAN JORGE J[ isV« XlaJS 

PICO 


\~~~> TEECE1RA 


38 








SAN MIGUEL 

S* MICHAEL ' — 

PontaDelgaaa '^^^ 






AZORES 

OR WESTERN ISLES 


Formicas T\ 


37 




1 


1 1 ! 


SV- MARIA JC^i — 

! i i 




40' longitude "West 30' fe m Greenwich. ZQ' 



25°I0' 



EdwfVMlc: 



Aciv York: Henri/ Holt & Co. 



PONTA DELGADA. 



473 



Henry of Portugal's navigators, is generally credited with their 
•discovery, in 143 1 ; but the existence of the whole of the 
islands was not known until some years later. With the 
exception of the period during which they formed an appendage 
of the Dukedom of Burgundy, and the sixty years or so of 
Spanish rule in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the 
Azores have always remained part of the dominions of the 
Portuguese Crown. 

Friday, December 21st. — We made the island of St. 
Michael's at 
daybreak, and 
anchored off 
Ponta Delga- 
da at eight 
a.m. Mr. Hay 
and Mr. See- 
man promptly 
came on board, 
willing and 
anxious to do 
all in their 
power for us. 
I felt that my 
only chance 
of recovery 
was to spend 
a few days on 
shore ; and 
.steps weTe 
accordingly 
taken to as,- 
certain what 

could be done in the way of securing lodgings. The result 
of the inquiries was not very encouraging, it being found 

3 m 




PONTA DELGADA — LANDING PLACE 



474 BORGES GARDEN. 



that the only English hotel in the place was nearly full, and 
that the few vacant apartments were engaged for guests who 
were expected to arrive by steamer this evening. It was, how- 
ever, ultimately settled that I and my maid were to have 
rooms at the hotel, and that the rest of the party were to 
remain on board the yacht. 

Our first impressions of Ponta Delgada were that the town 
appeared to bear a strong general resemblance to Venice, the 
curious hats worn by the men, and the black or dark-blue cloaks 
of the women, with their strange head-dresses, rather serving, 
to keep up the illusion. The city ranks third in extent and 
importance among those of the Portuguese dominions ; the- 
population being about thirty thousand, and the trade con- 
siderable. The main streets are wide ; the public buildings 
are somewhat numerous ; and many of the churches and 
private houses are well and substantially built, and display 
a considerable amount of. architectural skill and taste. The 
hotel, to which I was carried on landing, commands views 
over extensive orange-groves, the town, and the harbour, and 
wears a cheerful and comfortable aspect. It is kept by a 
motherly-looking Scotch woman, and her son and daughter, 
all of whom did their best to make us feel at home. Close by 
is the charming Borges Garden, where I reposed upon the 
grass while the rest of our party made a little tour of explora- 
tion. The vegetation appeared to combine the products of 
the temperate and of the tropic zones. The hedges of 
camellias, thirty and forty feet high, were covered with red and 
white double blooms, so full, and thick, and firm, that they 
resembled rosettes on a baby's cap rather than flowers ; while 
the ground was completely covered with the pure white and 
rosy red petals which had fallen from above. 

The temperature of the island of St. Michael's varies but 
little throughout the year, its extreme range not exceeding 
thirty-five degrees, and the average being about sixty degrees. 



J A COME GARDEN. 475 



Large quantities of pines are grown under glass, without the 
aid of artificial heat, the number exported last season amount- 
ing to no less than 134,000. Oranges are also extensively 
cultivated, the number of flat boxes annually exported varying 
between 708,000 in 1875-6, and 144,000 in 1882-3. The 
tobacco produced and consumed, or exported to the adjacent 
islands, or to Madeira, in 1882, was about 177 tons, valued at 
19,23 1 L, although — chiefly in consequence of the imposition 
of a tax, which has tended to diminish the consumption and 
export — the value of this year's crop was somewhat less. 
Cereals, such as wheat, maize, and beans, are also extensively 
cultivated. The wheat is all consumed on the island, and the 
exportation of maize is restricted by law. 

In the Borges Garden are several ponds, full of gold-fish, 
which, at our approach, came crowding to the side, to be fed 
by the hands of their owner. These beautiful members of the 
finny tribe are the natural denizens of most of the Azorean 
pools and rivers. At Sette Cidades there are two large lakes, 
full of gold-fish. The Jacome Garden, which we next visited, 
was, if possible, even more delightful than the first. I do not 
know which was to be the more admired — the wild luxuriance 
of nature, or the artistic tastefulness which had brought so 
many beautiful trees, shrubs, plants, and ferns, into such 
close, but judicious juxtaposition. As I was carried in a kind 
of hastily improvised palanquin along the narrow paths, I 
could fancy myself at one time in Chili, among the giant 
cacti and aloes ; at another in Jamaica, with its tree-ferns 
and foliage and flowerless frondage ; at another in Venezuela, 
with its wonderful tropical forests and mountain scenery ; and 
at yet another in Trinidad, with its virgin forests, and thick 
walls of verdure and bright blossoms. The hydrangeas, 
geraniums, and oleanders, were of enormous growth, and 
the camellia japonica assumed the proportions of a forest- 
tree. 



476 LAS FURNAS. 



At the hotel, to which I was glad to return after what had 
been to me a somewhat fatiguing expedition, we met an 
American lady who had been staying at Fayal, described by 
her as a most enchanting spot, but with very indifferent hotel 
accommodation. But she seemed to think that the magnificent 
view of the Pico from her bed-room window had fully com- 
pensated for the discomforts which she had suffered, and which, 
after all, were not very serious. She had also made an ex- 
pedition to the island of Flores, which justifies its name by 
abounding in flowers, and which is, I believe, one of the most 
fertile of the Azorean group. 

It would appear that most of the places which we have 
recently visited stand much in the same relation to the 
United States as health-resorts as the Riviera, Algiers, Egypt, 
and Madeira, do to England. The Azores, the Bahamas, the 
Bermudas, and even Venezuela, are annually sought in winter 
by many of the inhabitants of the more northern parts of 
America, just as the sunny shores of the Mediterranean are 
sought by British invalids. 

Saturday, December 22nd. — Tom had an idea that mountain 
air might perhaps do me more good than anything else, and 
had accordingly made arrangements for us all to go up to Las 
Furnas, supposed to be one of the healthiest spots in the 
Azores. These islands, which, as I need scarcely remind you, 
are of volcanic origin, abound in geysers, such as exist else- 
where only in the Yellowstone Valley, in Iceland, and I think, 
in New Zealand. Early in the present century an island 
which was called Sabrina suddenly sprang into existence, in 
the vicinity of St. Michael's, having been thrown by some 
volcanic disturbance to the height of between three and four 
hundred feet above the sea. It quickly subsided again, how- 
ever, and is now wholly submerged. The eruption which 
produced this short-lived member of the Azorean group com- 
menced on June 13, 181 1. The appearance of the strange 



SABRINA ISLAND. 477 



phenomena, as seen four days later by Captain Tillard, of 
H.M.S. ' Sabrina,' was that of a body of white smoke" revolving 
almost horizontally on the water, from which a succession of 
columns of black cinders, ashes, and stones, like church spires 
in form, rose to windward, at an angle of from 70 to 80 
degrees from the horizon, and to a height of between seven and 
eight hundred feet above the sea, assuming the most graceful 
and fantastic shapes as they mingled with the white feathery 
smoke and fell into the sea beneath. Vivid lightning and 
heavy reports, as of artillery, proceeded from this sulphurous 
mass ; and as the smoke was gradually blown off by the light 
wind, numerous waterspouts appeared to be drawn up by it, 
forming a striking addition to the marvellous spectacle. At 
the end of four days a crater was visible above the surface of 
the sea, which is here about thirty fathoms hi depth, and after 
twenty-nine more days of eruption a complete island, about a 
mile in circumference, had been formed, upon which Captain 
Tillard and some of his officers landed. Sabrina subsided 
almost as rapidly as it had sprung up ; for within a year all 
traces of it had disappeared, except an extensive shoal, from 
which, tow T ards the end of February, 18 12, smoke was observed 
to issue forth, but which has since then given no similar 
evidence of its existence. 

We started from Ponta Delgada soon after 9.30 a.m. with 
Mr. Seeman and one or two other friends who had kindly 
volunteered to accompany us ; others having already gone on 
beforehand to see that all was prepared and made ready for 
our comfort. Before setting out, some discussion took place 
as to the way which we should take, the choice lying, as we 
were informed, between 'the ugly short road, or the pretty 
long one.' We ultimately decided in favour of the latter ; but 
the result of our hesitation was that our servants and the 
luncheon, owing to some misunderstanding, went by one 
route, while we travelled by the other, and we never saw any- 



478 



ST. MICHAEL'S ORANGES. 



TaBACOeVINHO HAB1L1TAD0. 





thing more, 

either of our 

domestics or of our dejeuner 

until nine o'clock in the evening. 

On first leaving the town, our road lav 




FERR.UIA POINT 



between high walls, surrounding 
the numerous orange gardens, for 

which St. Michael's is so famous, hut 

with the produce of which I have been 

somewhat disappointed. 

I cannot imagine where 




MARKET-DAY, PONT A DELGADA. 479 



the good St. Michael's oranges come from. Certainly not 
from the island from which they derive their name ; although 
perhaps they are to be found on one of the others of the 
group. It is said here that the orange-trade of the Azores is 
not so prosperous as was formerly the case ; that the trees are 
getting old ; and that they are not being replaced by younger 
ones. The specimens of the fruit which we have tasted, al- 
though of the choicest descriptions, fresh-culled from the best 
groves, and sent to us as presents by our friends here, are 
decidedly inferior in quality to those which we brought with 
us from the West Indies. 

It was market-day at Ponta Delgada ; and we saw many 
peasants coming down in their varied costumes, some of the 
women dressed in white, and wearing cloaks or capotes, which, 
although they bore a strong family resemblance to one another, 
varied slightly in shape, according to the islands from which 
their wearers came : the general appearance being something 
like that of the Maltese faldette. A few of the men wore very 
curious high-peaked caps, called carapucas, of an old-fashioned 
shape, with flaps, turned up just like two horns ; although, as 
a rule, they were of a more modern and fashionable cut, and 
much less conspicuous in style. We were also greatly in- 
terested by seeing a sheep, harnessed to a small cart, which 
lie drew as well as any horse could have done, his only fault 
heing that he seemed inclined to tread on the heels of his 
master, whom he followed closely, and to whom he appeared 
to be devotedly attached. 

About noon we reached Ribeira Grande, a little town of 
some pretensions to importance, from the hills above which we 
enjoyed a magnificent view all along the north coast of the 
island right away towards Punta de Malagas. Here we pro- 
posed to make a halt and to endeavour to obtain some refresh- 
ment at the hotel; but upon a closer examination it looked so 
very dirty, and so very unpromising in the way of food, that 



480 



RIBEIRA GRANDE. 



we thought it better to proceed on our way until we arrived at 
a deep verdant ravine, in the midst of a fine forest, where we 
stopped to rest and to water and feed the horses. 




RIBEIRA GRANDE 



Kesuming our journey and mounting steadily to a height 
of 2000 feet, we reached the top of the pass, by which time it 
was nearly if not quite dark, so that we could scarcely dis- 
tinguish the justly-lauded view of the valley of Las Furnas, 
of which we had heard so much, and which had been described. 
to us as ' quite Swiss in character.' Our horses, which had 
appeared to be thoroughly tired-out during the latter part of 
the ascent, su -" "lenly recovered vigour and freshness, and flew 
down into what might very well have been the ' bottomless 
pit,' judging from the horrible odours of all kinds which 
assailed us on our downward career. Sulphurous and other 
vapours of every degree of pungency and density seemed to 
exude from the earth in all directions, and to be prevented 
from dispersing by the heavy mists which now enshrouded 
the tops of the mountains, and made it impossible for us to 



LAS FURNAS. 



<8i 



sec anything of the landscape as we rushed down the steep 
zigzag road. 

At last we reached our destination — I cannot say how 
much to my joy ; for although our road to-day had led 
us through enchanting scenery, as fair as could be met with 
in well-nigh any part of Europe — past groves of shady trees 
and luxuriant masses of ferns and flowers ; and although the 
temperature throughout had been delightful, neither too hot 
nor too cold ; I had felt so faint and weary that I was but 
imperfectly able to appreciate it alL The lights shining 
from all the windows of 
the hotel gave the building 
quite an imposing appear- 
ance from without ; bat the 
interior, in despite of the 
kind efforts of our friends, 
Mrs. and Mr. Hay, felt 
somewhat chilly and se- 
pulchral, probably owing 
in some measure to the 
dampness of the heavy 
vapours that pervaded the 
surrounding atmosphere. 
With the aid of bright 
fires and numerous lights 
a better effect was soon 
produced ; and a good din- 
ner warmed us, and made 
us feel better able to resist 
the humidity which seemed 
to envelop and cling to 
everything, and to give a 
cell-like character to all 
the rooms. My own apart- 




3N 



MEDICINAL BATHS. 




ment in particular was very 
conventual in appearance, 
with its heavy doors and win- 
dows, its stone floor, and its 
curious old-fashioned bed- 
stead. To atone for this de- 
fect the window commanded 
an extensive view across a 
valley, which became more 
beautiful when the sun rose and 
gilded the peaks of the mountains, and 
penetrated into the picturesque valley. 
At half-past seven there was a great commotion below, 
and much laughter, as the whole party, mounted on donkeys, 
scampered off at full gallop, down the steep hill, to the cele- 
brated sulphur and iron baths, which are about five minutes 
distant from the hotel. These baths have the reputation of 
being extraordinarily efficacious in restoring debilitated con- 
stitutions. There is also a special spring of water used only 
for drinking purposes, which comes bubbling and effervescing 
from the rock, and which tastes not unlike Apollinaris water. 
A good deal of it is bottled on the spot, for exportation. Our 
friends were extremely anxious that I should at once try an 
iron-bath, which they assured me would do me good ; and as 
I could not possibly go to the baths themselves, they offered 
to have the water brought to me. In due course, therefore, a 
group of men appeared, bearing a huge tin vessel, something 
like the lining of an ordinary bath, followed by a procession 
of individuals, carrying barrels of water, which they proceeded 
to pour into the receptacle in question. I was busy writing 
at the time, and did not pay much attention to their move- 
ments ; but a little while after they had retired I found that 
the bath ' leaked like a sieve ' ; . the aperture which had been 
left for the waste-pipe had not been stopped up, and the water 



HOT SPRINGS AND MUD-GEYSERS. 



was running out over the floor of the room and down the 
stairs. Yain attempts were made to procure a substitute; 
but nothing more suitable could be found than a small wooden 
washing-tub, which, not having been used for many months, 
had shrunk so much that the water ran away almost as soon 
as it was put in. Probably the proximity of the hotel to the 
bathing establishment accounted to some extent for this failure 
of its resources : but some other excuse must be found for 
the absence of baths in Ponta Delgada, where, even at the 
English hotel, it was impossible to procure anything bigger 
than an ordinary basin. 

Las Furnas seems to be the very centre of nature s boiling- 
house ; springs of all sorts of mysterious mixtures of varying 
temperatures, bubbling and spurting forth from the eajrth, 
sometimes with considerable force, in all parts of the lovely 
valley. Close by the bath-house, a spacious and well-appointed 
establishment, situated in a picturesque glen, numerous 'hot 
springs and great mud-geysers bubble and fume ; the water 
heing conducted into the clean marble baths by means of pipes. 
Several springs are made use of : but the two most in fayour 
contain a large proportion of iron and of sulphur respectively. 
Their medicinal qualities are highly esteemed, not only byi the 
people of the Azores, but by visitors from Portugal and even 
from remote parts of Europe and from America. The waters 
have been found to consist of hot alkalines and hot and cold 
carbonated chalybeates, and are supposed to be efficacious in 
cases of paralytic affection, skin-diseases, and rheumatism. 
The fashionable bathing season commences annually on St. 
John's day, June 24, and lasts until late in the autumn. The 
principal caldeira looked like a huge cauldron of muddy water, 
bubbling, and Seething, and occasionally throwing up jets into 
the^air, while a few steps further on was another, the activity 
of which seemed to be more internal. Throughout the entire 
extent of the valley of Las Furnas, caldeiras and boccas abound 



4*4 



BOCCA D INFERNO. 



in every direction. Nothing grows quite close to these boccaa : 
the mephitic fumes from which fill the air. and destroy all 
vegetation. The whole place seems to be constantly enveloped 
in medicated steam, while the earth around trembles with a 
ceaseless rumbling and thundering as of subterranean artillery. 
From one cavern called the Bocca d' Inferno, or Mouth of 
Hell, streams of hot mud pour forth without intermission. 




BOCCA D INFERNO 



This particular spot is much dreaded by the peasantry, who 
regard it as haunted by the ghosts of those who have at 
various times fallen into the hideous depths beneath. There 
is another geyser not far from this, from which any foreign 
substance, if thrown in, is immediately ejected with more or 
less violence, according to its size. Our guide experimented 
upon it with some large pieces of turf and stones, which 
appeared to irritate the demon of the fountain greatly, for they 



CALDEIRA DI TAMBOUR. 



485 



were thrown up again with a tremendous spurt, after an in- 
terval of a few seconds. These springs are very uncertain 
and therefore dangerous in their outbursts. Count Silvas 
and Mr. Seeman had been out this morning, previous to our 




Hfeills 







CALDEIRA DI TAMBOUR 



expedition, with a guide, in order to find out which of the most 
interesting places in the valley it would be safe for us to visit, 
and which it would be better to avoid. Not far from the Bocca 



486 SETTE CIDADES. 



d' Inferno, is the Caldeira di Tambour, from which a jet of 
water shoots high into the air, and a column of steam ascends 
far higher, while over all hangs a cloud of mist, which, except 
on a clear bright day like this soon envelops the whole valley, 
the eruption being accompanied by strange reverberations, not 
unlike the rolling of a drum. 

The Azores are famed for the prolific growth of all sorts of 
tuberous plants, such as potatoes, arums, and caladiums. I 
never saw anything so luxuriant as the yams, which abound 
here wherever the soil is good, and which are watered by 
warm streams, carefully conducted by an ingenious system of 
irrigation, to the roots of the plant. What studies of foliage 
they would afford, and how they would have delighted old 
David Cox's heart ! If he could only have seen them, the yam 
would have been immortalised. As we ascended the hill, or 
rather mountain, every ravine and every little stream were 
full of these glorious plants, which, mingling with the stately 
arums and the most delicate ferns, produced a wonderful effect. 
The views were ever changing, as we turned and twisted along 
the zigzag road ; for, owing to the volcanic character of 
the islands, the landscape is broken into innumerable hills, 
and jagged mountains, and peaks, and craters, thrown to- 
gether in picturesque confusion. 

From the summit of the pass we could see beneath us 
Lomba di Cavalheiro, Provocao, and a number of insignificant 
cottages, scattered over seven hills, which rejoice in the name 
of the Sette Cidades, or Seven Cities, and which everyone 
who goes to St. Michael's is expected to visit. Whence the 
place derives its extraordinary name is a mystery. Some 
suppose it to be a corruption of sette cividades, or ' seven 
hollows,' while others suggest that it may have been called 
the Seven Cities from some such reason as that for which a 
place in Ireland is called the Seven Churches. The view 
along the coast from this spot was very fine ; the waters of the 



LAGO DAS FURNAS. 



467 




broad 
Atlantic 
dashing in 
grand masses 
against the steep 
columnar cliffs, which 
are evidently basaltic in 
character, and which reminded me 
somewhat of the Giant's Causeway, 
The shores of the Azores are almost 
everywhere extremely precipitous : 
this characteristic being perhaps 
more apparent in the island of St. 
Michael's than in some of the 
others. At Pico, which we passed 
the other day, the coast scenery 
was also extremely grand and imposing. Our downward drive 
was, as usual, a very rapid proceeding ; and we were soon once 
more among the caldeiras, and breathing the heavy sulphur- 
ous vapours of Las Furnas. "We halted at a pebbly stream, 
and drank some of the water from a cup cleverly improvised 
out of a yam-leaf by our driver, and then went on through 
the village to the Lago das Furnas, or 'Lake of the Caverns,' 
which came suddenly into view as we turned the corner of the 
rocky road. The Lago is a beautiful pool, abounding with 
wild-duck, and teeming with gold and silver fish, which 
appear to form a great attraction to the birds of the neigh- 
bourhood ; for one constantly sees vultures and other birds 
of prey hovering over the water, anxious to snatch a meal 



IT.OVCXJAO 



MRS. HAY'S DUCKS. 



from its depths. The ducks are regarded as common pro- 
perty, and anybody is allowed to shoot them. Our friend 
Mrs. Hay, who has a pretty house built on the borders of 
the lake, has some tame ducks of her own ; and, wishing to 
prevent them from being shot, she applied to the mayor of 
the place for his assistance in the matter ; the result being 
that, as the best way of preventing the slaughter of the do- 
mestic pets, he gave notice on the following Sunday, from the 
church pulpit, that Mrs. Hay's ducks were private property, 
and that whoever shot them would be prosecuted. 

By the borders of the lake we found a boat waiting for us, 
in which we crossed to the foot of Mrs. Hay's garden, whence 
a docile and active donkey carried me to the house, through a 
grove full of orange-coloured flowers, quite new to me. 




LAGO DAS FURN'AS 



The house is uninhabited at present ; but the views were so 
charming that I sat for a long time on the terrace outside the 



PROCESSION OF TURKEYS. 



489 



ck>or admiring the pro- 
spect. I was amused by 
the manoeuvres of the 
before-mentioned ducks, 
and by a procession of 
black turkeys, which kept 
walking slowly backwards 
and forwards past the 
house ; the turkey-cock 
with his tail well spread 
out, as if he were bringing 
forth his whole family for 
the purpose of greeting 
their mistress, whose acl- 








vent was evi- 
dently expected. 
The rest of the 
party had in the 
meantime gone 
to a waterfall in 
the neighbour- 
hood which is in 
reality the source 
from which the 
lake is fed, and 
they described the surrounding scenery as picturesque in the 
extreme. At the northern end of the lake I had noticed 
dense columns of white smoke ascending with varying force 

3 



49° A TWO-LEGGED DINNER. 



and intensity, sometimes shooting high up into the air, and 
at others subsiding for a brief period altogether. This effect, 
I was informed, was produced by the action of another 
caldeira. Instead, therefore, of re-crossing in the boat, we 
rowed round the end of the lake in order to see more of this 
interesting phenomenon. As we landed and approached, 
the ground beneath our feet became very hot, and it ap- 
peared as if there were only a sort of thin crust between 
us and the nether regions ; while in addition to the large 
central spring, which was bubbling, and boiling, and spouting, 
with great force and velocity, it became evident that there 
were numberless small fountains bursting up through the 
ground in all directions. In the centre of the hottest spring, 
the temperature of which was I know not how many degrees 
above boiling-point, there is a stream of icy-cold water ; so 
that it would be almost possible to ice your champagne and 
boil your kettle at the same time. 

Our dinner at the hotel this evening was of so exceptionally 
a two-legged character that I think we ought all to be ashamed 
to look a chicken in the face again for many weeks to come, 
although I anticipate that we shall have plenty of poultry on 
our voyage home in the yacht. After dinner, at which several 
toasts were drunk in the old-fashioned way, we found that the 
Count de Silvao had been so kind as to make arrangements 
for a ball to take place among the peasants of the neighbour- 
hood, in order that we might see some of their national 
dances. 

The performers appeared to take their pleasure in a very 
melancholy way, the figures being slow, monotonous, and 
interminable. A solemn procession round the room took 
place between each figure ; the dancers sometimes consisting 
entirely of men, sometimes of women only, and sometimes 
of both sexes. Most of those who took part in the pro- 
ceedings either played guitars or contributed to a most 



A CITY OF THE DEAD. 




THE DANCE 



lugubriously monotonous chant, which I was told was a song 
improvised in our honour. 

The next day we started, about ten o'clock, in the Count's 
little phaeton, and 
proceeded past 
the lake, on the 
bosom of which 
we had been yes- 
terday, and thence 
through a valley, 
in which the rocks 
looked exactly like 
antique monu- 
ments and pyra- 
mids. We felt as 
if we were tra- 
versing a City of the Dead. It is only within the last few 
years that there has been a carriage-road to Las Furnas ; it 
having been previously necessary for all wheeled vehicles to 
stop about seven miles off, and for travellers to ride or 
walk up to the baths. The existing road is a good speci- 
men of engineering skill, and is in excellent order — a fact 
of which the Count, being very proud of his little horse, took 
advantage to show off his steed's best paces, carefully timing 
each kilometre, watch in hand, as we dashed along. 

The island of Fayal, which to my great disappointment we 
were not able to visit, is so named from the circumstance 
that the Portuguese, on its first discovery, found the place 
covered with Faya, which they described as a kind of beech, 
but which was really myrtle. This shrub is now used exten- 
sively over all the islands as a hedge to protect the orange- 
orchards, which purpose it answers almost as effectually as 
stone walls would do. The orange-groves here are very beau- 
tiful to look upon, notwithstanding the fact that the trees are 



492 



A BLAZE OF FOLIAGE. 



in a shady decline, and that the crop produced is not so 
plentiful as in former years. 

As we spun down the hill leading to the town of Villa 
Franca, I almost thought that we must come to grief, so 
anxious was the Count to urge his favourite to its best pace. 
Of course the yacht, which was to have come round from 
Ponta Delgada, had not yet arrived ; and we therefore occupied 
the time (as usual, you will say) in seeing a beautiful garden, 
belonging to the Count, who, an enthusiastic gardener himself, 
has certainly done what few people in the Azores can boast 
of, by making the most of the soil and climate at his disposal. 
Such a blaze of foliage and flowers I have rarely behelcl. The 
ground was one mass of coleas of every shade of colour, 
begonias, and other foliage-plants ; while the white Souvenir 
de Malmaison roses were more delightful than anything I had 

seen in England. 
No one could be 
kinder than the 
proprietor, who cut 
flowers lavishly, 
dug up plants, 
pulled up trees, and 
loaded not only all 
of us, but himself 
and his gardeners, 
with floral and bo- 
tanical treasures, 
to take on board 
the yacht. His 
delight in finding 
that we not only 
appreciated the 
beauties of his gar- 
den, but understood 




A STATE OF INNOCENCE. 



493 





something of 

^ botany, knew 

f no bounds, 

and showed 

itself in the form of 

profuse liberality. 

While we were sitting 
in the village square, waiting for luncheon, we 
were amused to see a troop of children scantily 
clad, one or two being minus garments of any 
kind whatever, playing at bull-fighting. A friend who was 
with us told me that until lately many of the children never 
wore any clothes at all till they were twelve or fourteen years 
old, and that she and some other ladies had formed a little 
club, in order to modify the crudity of this state of innocence, 
and had been for several years employed in making the most 
essential garments for the children of the poor. 

The Azores are considerably overpopulated ; and some 
thousands of natives annually emigrate to other regions, 
where I believe that they make fairly good colonists. It 
would be better if the number of emigrants could be doubled ; 
but that is not easily arranged. We were told that 3,000 was 
the number despatched to the Sandwich Islands in 1883. 

After a pleasant time spent in looking round the town, 
we returned to the hotel, where another meal, as gallinaceous 
as that of yesterday, awaited us. Just as we had taken our 



494 PUMICE-STONE. 



places at table a cry of ' The yacht, the yacht ! ' was raised. 
Some of the party went on the house-top to look for her ; 
and, true enough, there she was, coming round the point, 
and looking very spruce, with all her masts and her bow- 
sprit decorated with bouquets of flowers, in honour of Christ- 
mas Eve. It was rather a lengthy business to reach the shore, 
laden as we were with chickens, eggs, vegetables, fruit and 
flowers, which had been presented to us, and which had to 
be sent off to the yacht before we could embark ourselves. 
As we rowed from the shore we passed through what we at 
first took for a quantity of sargasso weed, but which on closer 
examination proved to consist of myriads of small pieces of 
pumice-stone. One of the party who professed to understand 
such matters, asserted that the pumice could not have been 
locally produced, but that it must have come from a distance, 
judging from its sea-worn appearance. He even went so far 
as to attribute its origin to the great earthquake in the 
Straits of Sunda ; although it would seem almost impossible 
that the influence of that catastrophe should have extended 
so far. 

On board the yacht, to which our Azorean friends accom- 
panied us, and with which they were much delighted, it was 
almost impossible to move about, owing to the profusion of 
flowers which had been sent on board as farewell offerings. 
The sun was sinking fast, and daylight dying, when we at last 
weighed anchor, bade farewell to our kind friends, and to the 
islands of the Azores, and resumed our homeward voyage. 
Some of our visitors had by this time found the motion of the 
yacht rather trying, and were, I think, glad when the moment 
for departure arrived, and they were able to return to the 
shore. 1 Once fairly under way, Ave proceeded to look round, 

1 As the land slowly receded from our gaze, and while we were still waving 
adieux to those who lingered until the last moment, we noticed a large boat 
putting off from the shore, and apparently rowing towards us. We paid no 



CHRISTMAS EVE THOUGHTS. 495 

and to get straight for sea. The cabins were all prettily 
decorated ; the pictures being wreathed with myrtles, and 
other greenery, including a little bit of real holly, which had 
been procured, I know not whence, by some energetic admirer 
of old English customs. 

With the reflection that our pleasant voyage was now 
practically ended, and that at the next port at which we looked 
forward to arriving we should be in our own beloved England, 
came thoughts of the past, and especially of past Christmas 
Eves, and of how and where they had been spent. Looking 
back for the last ten or fifteen years the record is indeed 
varied and comprehensive. 

Towards the end of the year 1870 we lost the kindest and 
best of fathers — one of whom it has been , written : ' On Mr. 
Brassey's death the grief of his friends was great and unani- 
mous. They felt that in losing him they had lost one who 
gave a hearty welcome to them, whether they came to import 
their sorrows or their joys, and who was equally ready, in 
either case, to give them aid and counsel, encouragement and 
sympathy.' One, too, of whom the Emperor of Austria had 
remarked, on hearing of an enterprising and daring feat per- 
formed by one of Mr. Brassey's agents, in the interests of his 
employer : 'Who is this English contractor, for whom men are 
to be found who work with such zeal and risk their lives ? ' 

After t*his sad trouble we were anxious to get away for a 
change as quickly as possible ; and Christmas Eve, 1870, found 
us speeding by P. and 0. steamer across the Bay of Biscay 
• and towards the Mediterranean, where we had left our yacht 
the ' Meteor ' a few months previously. On leaving South- 
ampton we encountered a heavy snow-storm and a thick fog. 
Eor nearly two days, owing to the intense cold, it was impos- 

special attention to the matter at the time ; but learnt, weeks afterwards, that 
the boat had been laden with fruit, vegetables, eggs, butter, and live-stock, 
which had been intended as a farewell offering to us by one from whom we had 
already received much kind attention. 



49° 



NEARING HOME. 



sibletowash the decks, and the water in the cabin was frozen. 
But every mile that we progressed took us nearer to the bright 
sunshine ; and soon the poor chilled passengers expanded like 
butterflies, casting aside their furs and sealskins, and appear- 




ing in all the glory of large white hats, gauze veils, and muslin 
gowns. 

In 1 87 1 , and the two following years, we spent Christmas 
Eve quietly at home ; on one occasion giving a dinner to our 



CHRISTMAS EVE ON LAVA. 497 

servants in the basement story of Normanhurst Court, where 
the crypt-like character of the surroundings lent a picturesque 
aspect to the scene ; and, on another, regaling the inmates of 
the Battle workhouse with seasonable fare, and entertaining 
the poor children with a Christmas-tree. On Christmas Eve, 

1874, we were returning from Nice to Paris, along the shores 
of the Mediterranean, which presented the unusual appear- 
ance of being covered with ice and snow. Christmas Eve, 

1875, found us staying with my brother-in-law, at Adlestrop, 
in Oxfordshire. The Heythrop hounds, of which he is the 
master, met at the house, and we enjoyed a merry spin with 
them across country, as a preliminary to the festivities of the 
following day. 

Christmas Eve of 1876 was the most remarkable of my 
experience. The latter portion of the day and the earlier part 
of the night were spent on the lava which flows from the 
crater of Kilauea, in the Hawaiian Islands ; and the scene 
upon which we then gazed for many hours was one of which 
it is impossible ever to forget the fascinating weirdness, both 
by daylight and when the short tropical sunset was past, and 
we could see the full effect of the red-hot cauldron, with its 
liquid fiery contents, surrounded by the but partially cooled 
masses of lava over w T hich we were walking. It was late ere 
we returned to our resting-place for the night ; and as I looked 
out from the window of my room, at three o'clock on Christ- 
mas morning, I realised the startling fact that the course of 
the stream of ever-flowing fresh lava had changed, and that 
the comparatively hard mass which we had so recently tra- 
versed was now once more aglow, and was moving, sullenly, 
slowly, and irresistibly towards the sea. 

On Christmas Eve, 1877, how different was the scene. 
We were hi the midst of the flat Komney marshes (whence so 
many of our best sheep come, and where the pasture-land is 
so good that it frequently fetches from three to four pounds 

3^ 



CHRISTMAS EVE IN MALTA. 



an acre), Hunting with Mr. Walker's gallant little pack of 
harriers, enjoying many a gallop over the smooth grass, and 
many a jump over the timber, which is of considerable height, 
in order to form secure enclosures for the cattle. 

Christmas Eve, 1878, found us in Malta harbour, where 
we had but recently arrived in the ' Sunbeam,' after having 
for fifteen days contended with heavy 
gales during the passage from Con- 
stantinople. The breeze was 



now favourable, and, hav- 
ing gaily de- 
corated our 
g| cabins with 
roses, in 




default 
of the or 
thodox holly, we 
weighed anchor at half- 
past five in the afternoon, and re- 
sumed our homeward voyage, not 
without some grumbling and regret 

on the part of several of the crew, who had looked forward to 
spending a ' merry Christmas ' on shore. I hope, however, 
that their troubles were forgotten in the treat which we pro- 
vided for them the next day. 

The three following Christmas Eves were passed quietly 
and uneventfully ; the first in our cosy little suite of rooms at 
the School of Art at Hastings, the next in following the East 



A RAPID JOURNEY. 



499 



Sussex foxhounds which met at Ninfield, and the last at 
home, where we were quite a small family party, our only 
guests being two near and dear friends— Lord and Lady Eeay. 



Shortly after the 
commenced a voyage 
just at the time of the 
January 1881 : a voy- 
he associated in my 
memories, owing to the 



Christmas of 1880 we 
to the Mediterranean 
great snowstorm of 
age which will always 
mind with the saddest 
serious ' illness, and to 




the death, 
after our 
my dear 
Christmas 
left Battle 
travelled by 
to Dover, 
mail-steamer 



immediately 
return, of 

father. On 
Eve, 1882, we 
at 7.30 a.m., 
special train 
and thence by 
and through- 



train round Earis to Marseilles, where we arrived at 11.30 a.m. 
on the following day — literally breakfasting in our own home 
in Sussex at seven o'clock one morning, and on board the 
' Sunbeam ' at noon the next day. 



500 A CHRISTMAS ' POST-BAG: 

Finally, we are leaving regretfully the harbour of Villa 
Franca, the last sound which greets our ears being a ringing 
and heartily responded to cheer from the barque ' Undine,' 
which is waiting for her cargo of oranges, and which will 
shortly follow us on our homeward-bound voyage. 

Tuesday, December 2 $th. — Christmas morning broke, bright 
and cheerful, over the smooth surface of the broad Atlantic — 
more like a summer than a winter's morning. The children 
were up early, and evidently looked forward with keen 
interest to the arrival of the so-called ' post bag,' which event 
we had arranged should take place at 8.30. As Pratt appeared 
with it over his shoulder, it presented a most plethoric aspect. 
Manifold and interesting were its contents : all the more 
so, perhaps, because the various presents were of necessity 
' home-made,' and the result of much loving thought, skilful 
ingenuity, and original devices, instead of having merely been 
bought in shops. 

At 10 o'clock a pleasant breeze sprang up, and we were 
able to put out the fires and spread our wings again. We 
had an early dinner of the true old English type — roast beef, 
turkeys, plum-pudding, and mince-pies — exactly the same fare 
being served all through the ship, at the respective hours of 
noon in forecastle, one o'clock mess-room, and two in saloon. 
The saloon dinner was served on a table decorated with roses 
and semitropical plants, which surrounded a triumph of the 
confectioner's art in the shape of a huge cake, covered with 
dull snow and sparkling ice, constructed by the elder South- 
gate, and surmounted by a figure of Old Father Christmas. 
Afterwards we inspected the pretty decorations in the fore- 
castle -and mess-room, the occupants of which portions of the 
vessel all looked very comfortable, reading their books and 
illustrated papers. The crew subsequently came to see our 
own decorations ; and at six o'clock we had service, which 
was well attended, and at which some beautiful hymns were 



CHRISTMAS ON THE ATLANTIC. 



501 



T eally admirably sung— particularly all Christendom's fa- 
vourite, Adeste, Fideles. After dinner various loyal and 

friendly toasts were pro- 
posed and drunk, beginning 
with ' Her Majesty the 
Queen : God bless her.' 
Then followed ' Auld Lang 
Syne,' and various other 
songs. It will be seen, 
therefore, that Christmas, 
as passed by us in the ' Sun- 




beam,' 

on the 

"broad At- 
lantic, was 1 

not such a 

dreary affair 

after all. 
Wednesday, 

December 26th. 
Boxing day ; 
fixed for the 
first opening of 
the 'Boyal Sun- 
beam Theatre.' 
The weather looks 
somewhat unpro- 
pitious, I fear, for 



502 THE PERFECTION OF YACHTING. 



this important ceremony, as we have a strong, though per- 
fectly fair wind, and are tearing along at the rate of ten, 
eleven, and twelve knots an hour. During the last three 
watches we have run forty, forty-two, and forty-four knots 
respectively, a speed which cannot fail to be accompanied by 
a certain amount of heaving motion, delicious and invigorating 
to those who are happily well enough to enjoy it. 

The weather in the evening not being suitable for the 
opening of the new Theatre, a concert was substituted, and 
was very successful. 

Thursday, December 27th. — We were racing along all night ; 
and at 2 a.m., when we were going at the rate of twelve knots, 
the sway and the quivering of the vessel quite woke me up. 
After vainly trying to go to sleep again, I settled myself to 
write and make up some of my past arrears of work. The 
sun rose from a somewhat sullen-looking bank of clouds ; and 
the aspect of the morning was not altogether too promising 
for the day that was to follow ; but it turned out much better 
than might have been expected, and was, in fact, one of the 
most perfect sailing days that I ever remember. 

The afternoon was simply lovely ; I cannot imagine more 
delightful weather for sailing : the wind being just enough on 
one side to keep us steady, and enough aft to prevent our 
lying over too much. It was really quite the poetry of motion,, 
and the perfection of yachting. If only I had been well, how 
much I should have enjoyed it ! Even as it was, I could not 
help appreciating the easiness of the ' Sunbeam's ' paces. I 
fancy that she wishes to show her gratitude for the dainty 
new coat (of white paint) which we gave her at Bermuda, and 
for her pretty gold girdle, which I am sure she thoroughly ap- 
preciates, and which she dips well down into the sea occasion- 
ally ; I suppose just to let Father Neptune have a chance of 
admiring it. 

In the evening the postponed opening of the Eoyal Sun- 



THE ROYAL SUNBEAM THEATRE. 



5°3 



beam Theatre took place, under the most favourable auspices 
and distinguished patronage. It had been decided, at a 
general committee-meeting which was held in the morning, 
that a charade would meet the requirements of the case better 




than any other form of dramatic composition, and that no more 
suitable word could be chosen for representation than ' Pilot.' 
The programme was as follows : 

DRAMATIS PERSONS. 
j 

First Syllable. 

Darby r. T. Pritchett, Esq. 

Joan Miss R. Liddell. 

3Iary miss y. Liddkll. 

Captain Heavy Swell . . . . R. A. Boissier, Esq. ' 
John H. E. Hudson, Esq. 

Second Syllable. 

Auctioneer H. E. Hudson, Esq. 

Mrs. Lachrymose Miss V. Liddell. 

Sir Timothy Tiinkins . . . . R. T. Pritchett, Esq. 

Lord Melting . R. A. Boissier, Esq. 

Lady Diana Stuckup .... Miss R. Liddell. 

"Whole Word. 
Captain Bobstay Mainbrace . . . R. T. Pritchett, Esq. 
p i'ot H. E. Hudson, Esq. 

Passengers .... f Mlss R & Miss v - Liddell. 

' ^ B. A. Boissier, Esq. 



5 o4 THE PIRATE-CAPTAIN. 



Great we're the efforts made to ' rig-out ' the performers ; 
all sorts of strange articles being called into requisition for the 
purpose. Joan's wig was composed of medicated wool supplied 
from the medicine chest ; while the Auctioneer had a fringe of 
' waste ' under the brim of his hat, which conveyed a vivid 
idea of grey hair, and greatly delighted the sailors. A 
triumph of art was achieved in the person of the Pirate- 
Captain, who, arrayed in a jersey and sea-boots, and armed 
with a huge dirk, looked truly ferocious ; a heavy black 
moustache, and black silk socks sewn inside his red night- 
cap, to represent black hair, adding greatly to the effect. 
Such were some of the expedients to which the party had re- 
course : and that they thoroughly enjoyed the fun of making 
things out of nothing may be judged from the peals of 
laughter which proceeded from the green-room throughout the 
day. At the conclusion of the play the following epilogue, 
which I trust that I need make no apology for producing, 
was spoken : — 

We welcome all, We're homeward bound, 

Both great and small, In ship both sound 

The little and the big ; And sure as you all know ; 

Dear Lady B., We've happy been, 

Sir Thomas he And much have seen, 

'11 forgive our hasty rig. Among them ' Old John Crow. 

Pray be you kind, We'll not retain, 

And do not mind Nor long detain 

If in the act we fail : You kindly listening here, 

We'll do our best, But bid adieu, 

Yours be the rest, In wishing you 

To help us in our sail. The happiest New Year. 

By nightfall the wind had dropped a little and was rather 
more aft. We were going along so quietly and comfortably 
now that, except for the gentle swirling of the water against 
the side, one would hardly have known that the yacht was not 
lying in harbour. At noon to-day we were in the latitude of 
Bordeaux, and not far outside the Bay of Biscay, which must 



SWIFT SAILING. 



5°5 



now be in a very different state to that of September last, 
when we crossed it on our way to Madeira. 

Friday, December 28th. — At 2 a.m. we saw on the starboard- 
beam the mast-head light of a steamer, steering North by 
East. By 8 o'clock she was hull-down behind us, though 
doing her best under steam and sail. Nothing could be more 
favourable for our passage than the present conditions of 
wind and weather. We have come very nearly a thousand 
miles during the last four days, and almost iind it difficult 
to believe that we are on the Atlantic in mid- winter. At 
noon the sky was too much overcast to make it possible to 
take any observations; but we had run 223 miles by dead 
reckoning, and were in Lat. 46.53 N., Long. 11.66 W. 

The Doctor delivered his last ambulance lecture, and also 
gave out some examination papers. I fear that, although 
the men have derived a grSat deal of useful knowledge from 
ihe lectures, they are too 
:shy to put it to the test 
of an examination. 1 

At 3 p.m. we hauled 
down the topmast stay- 
sail, and soon after took 
in the squaresail and 
fore-staysail. The wind 
,had shifted a little, 
and Tom wished to try 
some experiments with 
Sir William Thomson's 
Sounding Machine, a 

beautiful instrument, invented for the purpose of obtaining 
soundings from a ship running at full-speed, in water of any 




1 Of the practical value of the lectures we had striking proof in the conduct 
-of those on board the ' Sunbeam ' on the occasion of a serious boat-accident 
in Loch Carron, Scotland, in September, 1884. 

3 Q 



$o6 



AN INCI- 'DENTAL' FARCE 




depth, not ' exceeding ioo or 150 fathoms. The machine is 
provided with a glass tube, connected with the sinker, closed 

at the top, and coated 
inside with chromate of 
silver. The increased 
pressure at greater 
depths drives the water 
up the tube, and its 
action leaves a white 
mark, the position of 
which, by reference to a 
scale, indicates the depth 
to which the machine 
has descended. 

It was very cold 
after sundown, and we 
were all glad to gather 



round fires in the deck-house and saloon, which we found 
most cosy and comfortable. 

Saturday, December 2gth. — The wind continued favour- 
able, and we made swift progress throughout the day, which 
was uneventful. 

We determined to mark our last night at sea by a more 
than usually ambitious entertainment. Not only were the 
songs and glees carefully chosen, but scenes of a dramatic, 
nature entitled an Inci- * Dental ' farce were interspersed in 
the programme. The Dramatis Personam were — 



Dr. Stopper 
Captain Molar 



H. E. Hudson. Esq. 
E. T. Pkitchett, Esq. 
Miss R. Liddell. 



When Captain Molar, with his head swathed in flannel, and 
a large swollen cheek, presented himself to the audience the 
effect was truly comic ; and great w 7 as the laughter, when, in 
the course of narrating his sufferings, he pulled strings of 



AN ALARM OF FIRE. 



507 



walrus-teeth from his pocket, describing how they had all 
been extracted from his jaw ! Not less great was the amuse- 
ment when, on the dentist calling for his case of instruments, 
the maid walked in with a sack over her shoulder, containing 
a chisel and mallet and a huge pair of pincers. With these 
extraordinary implements the Doctor proceeded to extract 
the offending tooth from the unfortunate patient's jaw. After 
hauling him several times across the stage, the dentist placed 
his foot firmly against his victim's chest, and with a de- 
spairing effort wrenched out a ' molar ' at least four inches 
square. But after simulated pain came real rejoicing. 
- God save the Queen ' rang for the last time through the 
planks of our gallant little ship ; and the concerts of the 
' Sunbeam Vocal Society ' were brought to a triumphant 
termination. 








M 



RAME HEAD. 



Sunday, December 30th. — I was awakened at half-past 
two by finding my bed burning hot ; and it being pitch dark,. 

3q2 



508 IN THE CHANNEL. 

I lighted a' match as quickly as possible, and, feeling all 
along the woodwork, found that it was impossible to bear 
my hand on it. Thinking that the ship might be on fire, 
I rushed up on deck to call Kindred, when we found to 
my relief that it was only the steam-pipe, turned on to 
warm my room, which had become unduly heated. I was 
not altogether sorry to be thus rudely disturbed ; for it 
gave me an opportunity of seeing, if not exactly the Lizard 
Light, its reflection in the heavens, and to feel that we were 
once more practically in sight of our native land. By 4 o'clock 
the lights on the coast were more plainly visible, though 
we were still some distance off. About 8 a.m. we passed the 
Eddystone ; but I confess that I did not see it, although some 
of the men declared that they did, dimly looming through the 
fog. 

Off Eame Head we went through a large fleet of fishing- 
boats at anchor, and sent the dinghy off to one of them to 
get some fresh fish for luncheon. The boats were prosaic- 
looking, after the more picturesque forms which we had been 
accustomed to in warmer climates ; and the fish, it must 
be confessed, looked a very uninteresting grey mass, after the 
beautiful angels, rock-fish, groupers, and others that we have 
lately been admiring, though I have no doubt that they are 
much better to eat. 

Before one o'clock we had passed through Plymouth Sound, 
and under the beautiful hanging woods of Mount-Edgcumbe, 
and were safely moored to a buoy in the Hamoaze, between 
Devonshire and Cornwall, not far from Cremyll Point, and 
under the guns of the ' Boyal Adelaide ' and the ' Impreg- 
nable.' 

We had many visitors during the afternoon, including 
Admiral Sir Houston and Lady Stewart, Lord Mount-Edg- 
cumbe, and Admiral Hillyar, who were all interested in our 
voyage, and especially in our rapid passage of 5 days 1 2 hours 



PLYMOUTH SOUND. 



509 



from Villa Franca in the Azores to the Lizard. In fact, we 
might fairly say that the voyage had only occupied 5 days : 
for we did not lose sight of the Azores lights till after midnight 
on the 24th, and we saw the loom of the Lizard soon after 
midnight on the 29th. 




5i° 



WHA T MIGHT HA VE BEEN. 



POSTSCRIPT. 




HAVE on so many previous occasions 
expressed regret at the termination of 
happy voyages in the ' Sunbeam,' and 
thankfulness to the merciful Providence 
which has watched over us and guided us 
through storms, dangers, and difficulties 
by land and by sea, that I now find 
considerable difficulty in setting forth the 
same feelings in a different form of words. 
In the present instance, however, I feel that we have special 
reason for gratitude. The examination which the ' Sunbeam ' 
has undergone since our return home proves conclusively that 
we had indeed just cause for anxiety when we were hove-to 
in the cyclone between the Bahamas and the Bermudas ; for 
that which we then only feared might be the case has since 
proved to be a startling reality. The yacht having been 
placed in dry-dock, it was found that a portion of the stern- 
post, from which the rudder hangs, was so rotten that the 
wood crumbled like dust in the fingers when touched. Part 
of the hull also, in the construction of which imperfectly- 
seasoned American elm had incautiously been made use of, 
showed equally severe symptoms of dry-rot. It is, there- 
fore, indeed fortunate that no serious calamity happened to 
us when we were exposed to the strain and fury of the 
cyclone ; for had the weakened rudder actually given way, 



AT REST. 



5" 



w r e should in all probability have been instantaneously over- 
whelmed. 

Those of my readers who may have made previous ac- 
quaintance with the ' Sunbeam ' will perhaps be interested 
to see the accompanying representation of her as I last beheld 
her in dry-dock : her hull entirely reconstructed of teak, two 
of her topmasts removed, prior to being replaced by new ones, 
and minus her decks (which had lasted nine years, although 
they had always been considered too flat) : so that all that 
remained of the old original ' Sunbeam ' was her iron frame- 
work, which, humanly speaking, might reasonably be ex- 
pected to last for ever. 




But although, when completed, she will in many respects 
be practically a new vessel, her frame will still contain all the 
old associations ; and I shall ever entertain for her the same 
w 7 arm affection which I have cherished from the first ; while 



s« 



FAREWELL. 



the confidence in her sea-going qualities, which has so often 
made me feel that 

Rock'd in the cradle of the deep, 
I lay me down in peace to sleep, 

will suffer no diminution. 

It now but remains for me to thank for their forbearance 
those who have followed me to the end, and to wish my 
readers a kind 





3r 



LIST OF PERSONS ON BOARD 'SUNBEAM; R.Y.S. 

DUBING VOYAGE TO AND FEOM THE WEST INDIES. 
September to December, 1883. 



Sir' THOMAS BEASSEY, K.C.B., M.P. 

Lady BEASSEY 

Miss MUEIEL AGNES BEASSEY 

Miss MAEIE ADELAIDE BEASSEY 

Miss EHODA LIDDELL 

Miss VIOLET LIDDELL 

Eight. Hon. G. J. SHAW LEFEVEE, M.P. 

SEYMOUE HADEN, Esq. 

E. A. BOISSIEE, Esq. 

E. T. PEITCHETT, Esq. 

H. E. HUDSON, Esq. 



Left at Madeira. 



Uobert Humphries, Sailing Master 
Henry Kindred, Mate 
William Jones, Boatswain 
Alfred Le Seilleur, Carpenter 
John Pale, Coxswain, First Cutter 
William Copp, Coxswain, First Gig 
Eichard Baulf, Coxswain, Second Gig 
Eobert Ives, Coxswain, ' Flash ' 
Christopher Maddick, Signalman 
James Genge, Caterer 
Charles Brading, Winchman 
John Williams, A.B. 
John Knight, A.B. 
Thomas Eussell, A.B. 
George Beach, A.B. 
.Eichard Frogbrook, A.B. 



Charles Cavers, Chief Engineer 
Charles Nichols, Second Engineer 
Savarillo Agello, Stoker] 
Josef Borga, Stoker L Maltese 

Josef Bona, Stoker ) 

Ebenezer Southgate, Chief Cook 
Alfred Southgate, Second Cook 
William Amey, Forecastle Cook 



George Pratt, Chief Steward 
Frederick Thompson, Second Steward 
George Foy, Third Steward 
Joseph Jones, Stewards' Boy 
George Pitt, Mess-room Boy 

Annie Escritt, Lady's Maid 
Louise Oulevy, Children's Maid 



5 i6 



APPENDIX. 



ANALYSIS OF LOG OF 'SUNBEAM,' B.Y.S. 

From September 16 to December 30, 1883. 





Sail Steam 


Time on 
Passage 


Malta to Gibraltar . 
Gibraltar to Madeira 
Madeira to Trinidad 
Trinidad to Nassau 
Nassau to Bermuda 
Bermuda to Ponta Delgada 
Ponta Delgada to Devonport 






812 

597 
2,164 
i,376 

949 
919 
887 


408 

35 
858 
850 
254 
1,074 
323 


d. h. 

10 I 

2 22 
17 14 

11 18 
IO 18 
IO 22 

5 20 


T( 


)tal 




7,704 3,802 


69 13 



Average speed seven knots = 1 68 miles a day. 
Coals consumed, 120 tons. 

Malta to Gibraltar. 



Gibraltar to Madeira. 



Date 


Sail 


Steam 


Lat. N". 


Long. 


September 16 


130 


— 


36-43 


12-23 E. 


17 


74 


27 


37-06 


II-I6 E. 




18 


121 


6 


38-13 


19-0 E. 




19 


143 


— 


38-26 


8-5 E. 




, 20 


80 


— 


38-2 


6-47 E. 




, 21 


in 


— 


38-0 


4-29 E. 




22 


158 


— 


397 


3-13 E. 




23 


52 


119 


38-2 


0-41 E. 




24 


43 


58 


37-13 


i-6 W. 




25 


— 


198 


36-1 


4-30 W. 






812 


408 



Date 


Sail 


Steam 


Lat. N. 


Long. 


September 26 
27 
28 
29 
30 


_ 

69 
236 
256 

36 


45 
35 


3 6-6 

35-39 

34-02 

30-39 
3238 


5-20 w. 

7-4 W. 
11-31 "W. 
1 6-6 W. 
1 6-5 5 W. 


597 


80 



APPENDIX. 



517 





Made ie a 


to Teinidad. 




Date 


Sail 


Steam Lat. N. 


1 

Long. W. 


October 1 1 


48 


— 


32-1 


17-30 


„ 12 


84 


— 


30-55 


I8-30 


13 


no 


— 


29-27 


I9-47 


14 


114 


— 


27-57 


21-4 


15 


154 


— 


267,1 


23-28 


16 


185 


— 


25-31 


26-39 


l l* 


194 


— 


23-43 


29-35 


18 


208 


— 


24-35 


32-34 


*9 


162 


— 


1935 


34-28 


„ 20 


158 


— 


18-39 


37-05 


» 21 


197 


— 


16-54 


40-0 


„ 22 


207 


— 


15-14 


43-9 


23 


176 


— 


I3-44 


45-43 


24 


157 


— 


1301 


4 8- . 5 


25 


10 


l8l 


11-38 


51-6 


26 


— 


213 


11-09 


54-38 


27 


— 


221 


11-05 


58-18 


28 


— 


218 


10-46 


61-30 


29 


— 


25 


1038 


61-34 

Arrived at 

Port of Spain 




2,164 


858 





Teinidad to Nassau. 



Date 


Sail 


Steam 


Lat. N. 


Long. W. 


October 31 





25 


IOI4 


61-41 


November 1 


— 


35 


10-46 


6i-8i 


4 


■ — 


ii5 


u-8 


63-30 


5 


— 


189 


10-45 


66-35 


6 


— 


24 


10-37 


67-2 


7 


93 


— ■ 


11-52 


67-51 


8 


^89 


— 


13-56 


70-16 


9 


219 


— 


16-9 


73-9 


„ 10 


225 


— 


17-51 


76-54 


51 II 


40 


— 


17-55 


76-49 


13 


— 


5o 


181 


76-13 


14 


— 


68 


18-23 


77-8 


15 


26 


123 


19-23 


75-48 


16 


68 


63 


20-16 


74-6 


17 


192 


— 


21-47 


77-2 


1,8 


219 


— 


247 


7931 


19 


105 


68 


25-56 


78-21 


20 


— 


90 


25-6 


77-2 


i,376 


850 



5 i8 



APPENDIX. 



Nassau to Bermuda. 



Date 


Sail 


Steam 


Lat. N. 


Long. W. 


Observations 


Nov. 22 
» 23 
„ 24 


43 
123 

143 


19 


25*53 
27-4I 
30-03 


76-53 
76-41 

77-28 


Fresh easterly winds 
Moderate to light 
Easterly winds 


,, 25 
11 2 6 
i, 27 


130 

34 
46 


85 

100 


3i'54 
32*08 
32-08 


77-04 
75-IO 
72-25 


Lying-to. Strong gale t 
from N. to E 


„ 28 
,, 29 


35 
72 


— 


3 1 "47 
31-35 


72-2 
71-3 


Same weather. Steer- 
ing, close-hauled, 
er storm-canvas, 
Bermuda 


n 30 

Dec. 1 

11 2 


46 
128 
149 


50 

254 


31-19 

3i-5i 
32-17 


70-3 
67-54 . 
64-48 




949 



Bermuda to Ponta Delgada. 



Date 


Sail 


Steam 


Lat. N. 


Long. W. 


Observations 


Dec. 11 


30 


142 


32-48 


6l-27 




11 I2 


165 


— 


32-47 


58-15 




11 13 


I06 


84 


33-27 


54-36 




,, 14 


190 


— 


34-2 5 


50-52 




1, 15 


243 


— 


35-22 


46-IO 


Gale from S. W. 


„ 16 


148 


15 


35-54 


42-59 




„ 17 


— 


228 


36-57 


38-22 


! 


„ 18 


— 


175 


37-41 


34-52 


Moderate head wmd 
and sea 


„ 19 


— 


147 


37-08 


31-52 


Similar weather 


11 20 


22 


I48 


38-17 


28-31 


Made Fayal at day- 
break 


,1 21 


15 


135 


3745 


25-41 


Arrived at St. Mi- 
chael's 


919 


1,074 



APPENDIX. 



5*9 



St. Michael's to Plymouth. 



Date 


Sail 


Steam 


Lat. N. 


Long. W. 


Observations 


Dec. 25 

„ 26 

,, 27 
„ 28 
., 29 
„ 30 


4 

232 
260 
2I3 
168 


I50 
173 


39-3 

41-37 
4432 
46-58 
48-07 
50-22 


2 3 -8 

I9-I9 

14-56 

11-06 
7-28 

7-4 


Left Ponta Delgada. 
Called Villa Franca 

Arrived at Plymouth 


887 


323 




S20 



APPENDIX. 



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3 


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r^ c^mo co ^o*o\o\o^)'0 0^o\o^;^o^no s c^mo ^oco iom mMO mo mo mo ioio^-pi I 


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la 


w o o a> o> o nnn o w ■+■+* inco co ooo oo r^MO HMOOOOwOO^om^^-Tj- 
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p n o\nn Ninmin in io uimo mo mo oi n oi o> a omo o cno c^co as o h o o co mco 
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>§3 

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Monday 26 
Tuesday 27 
Wednesday 28 
Thursday 29 
Friday . 30 

December 

Saturday 1 
Sunday , 2 
Monday 3 
Tuesday 4 
Wednesday 5 
Thursday 6 
Friday . 7 
Saturday 8 
Sunday 9 
Monday 10 
Tuesday n 
Wednesday 12 
Thursday 13 
Friday . 14 
Saturday 15 
Sunday , 16 
Monday 17 
Tuesday 18 
Wednesday 19 
Thursday 20 
Friday . 21 
Saturday 22 
Sunday 23 
Monday 24 
Tuesday 25 
Wednesday 26 
Thursday 27 
Friday . ' 28 
Saturday 29 
Sunday 30 
Monday 31 






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Sunday 21 
Monday 22 
Tuesday 23 
Wednesday 24 
Thursday 25 
Friday . 26 
Saturday 27 
Sunday 28 
Monday 29 
Tuesday 30 
Wednesday 31 

November 

Thursday 1 
Friday . 2 
Saturday 3 
Sunday 4 
Monday 5 
Tuesday 6 
Wednesday 7 
Thursday ' 8 
Friday . 9 
Saturday 10 
Sunday n 
Monday 12 
Tuesday 13 
Wednesday 14 
Thursday 15 
Friday . 16 
Saturday 17 
Sunday r8 
Monday 19 
Tuesday 20 
Wednesday 21 
Thursday 22 
Friday . 23 
Saturday 24 
Sunday 25 



TEMPERATURE OF AIR AND WATER 

froroL October 21, to Dec-ember 31,1883. 





OCTOBER 








Average 

. .... Do 


Ta 


AIR . , 
nperature of Air at 8 a .wt.83 . 16' 
Da Do 12-noon. 83 °48 r 


WATER 

'. Average Temperature of "Water at 8 a..m. 79? 

i Do ...Do Do 1 12 noon 19° 4' 

Do Do JDa 9 p.m. 80? 




















90 


1 z 


3 4 


6 


6 


7 


8 


9 


10 


II 


IZ 


13 


14 1 


3 16 


17 


18 


19 


20 


Zl 


22 


23 


24 


25 


2G 


27 


2a 


23 


30 


31 






80 












































































































































































• 




















rz 








































/' , 












































































rr 


' 




" 








70 








































> 


































































































































s 


































































■ / 






















































































60 




































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































50 


































































































































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NOVEMBER 








AIR 

Average Temperature of Air a.i> 8 a,.m- 78 ? 20' 

Do Do Do 12-rworv 79° 2' 

Do Do Do 9p.nv 78? 2' 


WATER 

Average Temperature of Watei* at 8 ou.nv. 77?32 ' 

■ ...Do Do Do lZ-noon. 74? 

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90 


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DECEMBER 









AIR 

Average Temperature of A 
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WATER 

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27 


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New York: Henry Holt & Co 



INDEX 



3 s 



INDEX. 



ACA 

ACALVPHA-TKEE, the, I45 

Adjutant birds, 98, 137 
Admiralty House, Port Eoyal, 214 
JEstheticism in negresses, 229 
Agouti (Chloromys acuti), the, 118 
' A. H. Baynes ' (missionary boat) , 

355 
Air, temperature of, 5 20 
Akee (Blighia sapida), the, 248 
Allamandas, 107, 158 
Alligators, 211 
Almoner, a Portuguese, 15 
Aloes, 174 

Alphabet, a negro rhyming, 232 
' Alps ' (British steamer), outrage on, 

by Haytian troops, 286 
Ambergris, 291, 348 
' Ambrosia,' 275 
Ambulance meetings, 349-352, 435, 

505 
Anana (plant), the, 128 
Anchor of Columbus, at Trinidad, 

123 
Andros, Bahamas, 353 
Angel-fish, 406, 412, 420 
Anguila, island of, Bahamas, 294 
Animals, sufferings of, at sea, 19 
Ants, 131, 132; flying, 152 
Aquarium, the, Bahamas, 331 
Argonaut, the, 410, 442 
' Armathwaite ' (steamer) , 84 
Artillery-plant, the, 426 
Atolls, 318 
Azores, the, description of, 471 ; 

history of, 472 ; over-population 

at, 493 



BEE 

'Baby's ' philosophy, 205 

Bacon, quoted, 144 

Bahamas, the, marine wonders of, 
314; vegetation of, 323; number 
of islands in the group, 355, 356 

Balcao, the, Madeira, 61 

Balisiers (Carina indica), 115 

Bananas, 64 ; scarlet (Banana car- 
dinalis ; Musa coccinea), 29 

Bangle-making, 165 

Bannister, Major Gen., inscription 
to, 250 

Barbecue, a Jamaica, 235 

Barracks of the West India regi- 
ments, 225 

Barracuda (fish), the, 331 

Basil Hall, Captain, quoted, 300 

Baulf (sick seaman of the ' Sun- 
beam '), 343, 356 

Bay-bean, the, 335 

Belladonna lilies (Amaryllis), 45, 51 

Bella-sombra (tree), 31 

Bellissima (plant), 185 

Belmont, Jamaica, 274, 279 

Benbow, Admiral, tomb-inscription 
of, 219 

Bermudas, aspect of, from the sea, 
390 ; comprehensive description of 
the group, 391 ; number of islands 
comprised in, 391 ; productions of, 
392 ; floating dock at, 403 ; eti- 
quette at, 404 ; farming in, 425 ; 
colonisation of, 430 ; storms at, 
446 

Bertram, Mr. (Bermudian natural- 
ist), 431, 432 



524 



INDEX. 



BIB, 
Birds, 118, 179, 421 
Black Beard, the pirate, 310, 334, 

346 
Blanco, Guzman, President of Vene- 
zuela, his mode of government, 
188-190 
Blandy, Mr., visit to his ' quinta,' 

Madeira, 31, 71 
Blood-tree (Croton gossypifolium) , 

the, 112, 145 
Blue Basin, Trinidad, 116 
Blue Bird (Sialia sialis), the, 422 
Blue Mountains, Jamaica, 207, 209, 

221, 223, 281 
Bocas, the, Trinidad, 95-97 
Bocca d'Inferno, Las Furnas, 484 
Bog Walk, Jamaica, 251 
Bolivar, General, statue of, 188 
Borges Garden, St. Michael's, 474, 

475 
Bottled messages at sea, 295, 297 
Brain-coral (Diploria), 312, 353 
Brazil-nut-tree (Bertholletia excelsa), 

the, no 
' Britannia ' (training-ship), the, 3 
Bryopsis plumosa, 364 
Buen Ayre, isle of, 204 
Buggies, 224 
Bullock-carts, 27 
Bussu palm (Manicaria saccifera), 

the, 166 
Butter-nut-tree (Caryocar nuci- 

ferum), the, 112 



Cacao (Theobroma Cacao), 108, 116, 
140 

Cacti, 175 

Caicos Islands, the, 291 

Calabash-tree (Crescenti Cujete), 
the, 109, 424 

Caldeira di Tambour, Las Furnas, 
485 

Calheta, bay of, Madeira, beach- 
landing at, 46 

Camacho, Madeira, 55 



COC 

Camara do Lobos, Madeira, 37, 

40 
Camellia-trees, 41 
Campanario, Madeira, 39 
' Canada ' (screw-corvette), the, 447 
Canical, Madeira, 73, 76 
Cannon-ball-tree (Couroupita guia- 

nensis), the, 112 
Cape Garajao, Madeira, 76 
Cape Girao, 37 
Cape -jasmine, the, 153 
Capitao rock, the, Madeira, 59 
Caracas, Venezuela, 182, 185, 192, 

193 

Carapucas (hats), 479 

Cardinal gros-beaks (Petylus car- 
dinalis), 422 

Carpets, objections to the use of, on 
sea-going vessels, 376 . 

Carro (running sledge), the, 44 

Cartwright, Captain, visit to, 274 

Cascaes (Portugal), 13 

Cassia, yellow, 175 

Cat Island, Bahamas, 361 

Cattle, at Trinidad, 99 

Caverns, Bahamas, 325 

Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas, 295 

Cemeteries, Jamaica, 215, 240 

Chacao, plain of, Venezuela, 191 

Chandelier-tree (P and anus candela- 
brum), the, no 

Chestnut-trees, Campanario, Ma- 
deira, 39 

Child's funeral, Madeira, 40 

Chinese shops, Trinidad, 121 

Christmas at sea, 500 

Christmas-eves abroad, 495 

Chocolate, 143 

Cinchona, cultivation of, 236 

Cinnamon-tree, the, 108 

Cintra, Portugal, 13 

' City of the Dead,' a, 491 

Claxton Pier, Trinidad, 135 

Cloud effects, 466. 

Cocktails, receipt for making, 151, 
152 

Cocoa-nuts, 360 



INDEX. 



5^5 



COF 

Coffee, 108 ; history of its introduc- 
tion, 144 ; popular delusion con- 
cerning the berry, 144 

Colonial etiquette, 404 

Columbus, Christopher, 33, 123, 361, 

365 
Commerell, Sir Edmund, visit to, at 

Bermuda, 397, 398 
Conch-shells, 303 
' Conditioners,' 134 
Cook, Captain, at Madeira, 33 
Coolies at Trinidad, 115, 148 
Cojoernicia tectorum (palm), 177 
Coral, 312, 353, 441; fishing, 313; 

insect, 317 ; formation of the reef, 

3". 317 
Corbeaux, 118, 160 
' Cottage,' the, Bermuda, 405, 445 
Council Chamber, Port of Spain, 160, 

161 
Cow-fish (Ostracion qiiadricome) , 

the, 407 
Crabs, 215, 335, 360 
' Crampton's Tonic,' receipt for, 151 
' Crazy ant,' the, 132 
Crook-flower of Caracas, the, 181 
Cuba, 288 

Cunningham Lake, Bahamas, 320 
Curacoa, Isle of, 204 
Curral dos Bomeiros, Madeira, 42 
Cuttle-fish, 409, 410 



Dana, quoted, 317, 318 

Dancing, at the Azores, 490 

Dante, quoted, 126 

Dartmouth en fSte, 3 

Darwin, quoted, 75 

Dengue, or breakbone fever, 394 

' Dido ' (corvette), the, 279 

Dinghys, 439 

Dining in a storm at sea, 380 

Divers, at the Bahamas, 316 

Divi-divi-tree (Gcesalpinia coriaria), 

the, 201 
Dog-tax, a, at Trinidad, 105, 119 
Dragon's-blood-tree, the, 236 



FLO 

Dragon-trees, 76 
Doubloons, Spanish, 194 
Drowning, a missionary's wife's 

notion of, 7 
Ducks, 488 
Dunmore, Lord, 334 
' Duntrune ' (clipper), 30, 31 
Duppies (ghosts), 215 



Earthquake at Caracas in 1812, 193 

Echini, 333 

Eleuthera, Bahamas, 360, 361 

Elwes, Mr., visit to, at Madeira, 42 

Emigrant vessel, an, visit to, 26 

' Endeavour ' (Captain Cook's vessel), 

the, 34 
English Church, the, Funchal, 54 
Entada scandens, the, 265 
Epilogue, an, 504 
' Erna ' (clipper), the, 30 
Etiquette in the colonies, 404 



Fairies' Cave, the, Madeira, 53 
Fairyland, Bermudas, 433 
' Fairy ship,' Bahamas, 330 
' Fantome,' H.M.S., 245, 395, 452 
Farce, a, played on board the ' Sun- 
beam,' 506 
Faya (myrtle), the, 491 
Fayal, Madeira, 67, 68 
Ferns, 154, 179, 239, 268, 269 
Fern Walk, Jamaica, 235 
Festa, a, at Madeira, 69 
Fig-tree, wild, 323, 334 
Fish, 302, 313, 331- 407 
— coloured, 313 
Fisheries Exhibition, London, 351, 

363 
Fishing in the Bahamas, 331, 332, 

405-412 
Fish-pond, Bermuda, 405 -412 
Flamboyante, the, 249, 323 
Flamingos, 353 
Flora of the Azores, 492 
Bahamas, 323 



526 



INDEX. 



FLO 
Flora of the Bermudas, 425 

Jamaica, 249 

Madeira, 28, 29, 41, 49, 55, 58 

■ Trinidad, 106 

Mores, Azores, 476 

Flowers, 220, 238, 492 

Flying-fish, 87, 332 

' Foam ' (gunboat), the, 390 

Food-producing-trees, 112 

Forests in the tropics, 176, 177 

Fossil-beds, Madeira, 74 

Freeling, Sir Sanford, visit to, at 

Trinidad, 99, 101, 156 
French, the, at Venezuela, 168 
Fresh water on sea voyages, 100 
'Frolic' (gunboat), the, 76 
Fuller, Mr., visit to, at Trinidad, 116 
Funchal, Madeira, early history of, 

33 ; city arms of, 68 



Galdy, Lewis, tomb-inscription of, 
217 

Gales at sea, 374, 376, 385, 386 

Gallwey, General, visit to, at Ber- 
muda, 397, 398 

Gar-fish (Hemvrhamphus pleii), 407 

'Garnet ' (screw corvette), the, 412 

Genip-tree, the, 239 

Geographical -tree, the, 145 

George, Prince, of Wales, 393, 404, 

447 
Ghee, 112 

Gibbs Hill Lighthouse, 436 
Gibraltar Waterfall, Jamaica, 280 
Girao, Cape, Madeira, 37, 38 
' Glass Window,' Eleuthera, 361 
Grabham, Dr. (English physician at 

Madeira), visit to, 30, 58 
' Grantully Castle ' (steamer), the, 

77 
Grape-fruit, 305 
Grass -hammocks, 165 
' Graveyard ' geranium, the, 426 
Great Inagua, Bahamas, 290 
Great Isaac Cay Lighthouse, 297, 298 
Green ebony, 339 



HUX 

Groo-Groo palms (Acrocomia), 128 

Groper-fish, 314 

Groupers (Epinephalus striatus), 
407, 420 

Guano, 325 

Guide-book for the tropics, a, neces- 
sity for, 207 

Guinea-grass, 262 

Gulf of Paria, 96, 163 

Gulf Stream, the, 296, 297, 365 

bottles, 296, 297 

Gully Road, Jamaica, 266-268 

Gun Cay Lighthouse, 296 

Guy Fawkes clay in the tropics, 167 



Hamilton, Bermuda, 396, 397 
Hammocks, 165, 166 
Hassell, Colonel, visit to, 239 
Hay-boats, Portuguese, 17 
Hayti, 285, 287 ; rebellion at, 286 
Haytian aristocracy, 286 
Heat in the tropics, 278, 279, 292 
' Hell ' of Jamaica, the, 256 
Helmsmen, duties of, 387 
Henry, Prince, of Portugal, 32 
Henry, Prince, of Prussia, 98, 101, 

121, 159 
Hermit-crabs, 335, 360 
Hind-fish (Epinephalus guttatus), 

408 
Hog-fish, 411 
Hole-in-the-Wall, Abaco, Bahamas 

359 
' Holy Ghost ' orchid, the, 158 
Honey-bear, the, 452 
Hosein (or Tadja ; coolie fete), the, 

148 
Hotel Nettuno, La Guayra, 170 
Hot springs, Azores, 483 
House interiors in the tropics, 161 
Hoya Carnosa, the, 55 
Humboldt, quoted, 128, 193 
Humming-bird-fish, 313 
Humming-birds, 106, 153, 179 
Hungry Bay, Bermudas, 438 
'Hunter ant,' the, 133 



INDEX. 



527 



IDO 

Idols, 347 

Iguanas, 341 

Indian Temple, San Salvador, 346 

Insects, 180 



Jacome Garden, St. Michael's, 475 

Jamaica, 207 ; its sanatorium, 209 ; 
Port Boyal, 209 ; an episcopal 
gathering afl, 211 ; Admiralty 
House, 214; Kingston, 218; the 
Institute, 224 ; the barracks, 225 ; 
a negro rhyming alphabet, 232 ; 
lazaretto, 245 ; aborigines of, 257 ; 
its fruit trade with America, 282 ; 
climate of, 357 

Jelly-fish, 168 

Jewellery, 165 

Jew-fish, 332 

' Johnny Crows,' 137 



MAE 

Liguanea Plain, Jamaica, 220, 226 

Lily-of-the-valley-tree (Clethra arbo- 
rea), the, 30 

Lily-flower, the, 354 

Linstead, Jamaica, 252 

Lisbon fruit-market, 14-16 

Livesey, Mr. James, cited, 197 

Lizards, 227, 341 

Locusts, 1 80, 191 

Log of the ' Sunbeam,' 464, 465 
from Malta to Gibraltar, 516 
from Gibraltar to Madeira, 516 
from Madeira to Trinidad, 517 
from Trinidad to Nassau, 517 
from Nassau to Bermuda, 518 
from Bermuda to Ponta Delgada 
518 ; from St. Michael's to Ply 
mouth, 519 

Loo Bock, Madeira, 29 

Lories, tame, 129 

Love-vine, the, 325 



Killarney Lake, Bahamas, 320 
Kingsley, quoted, 135 
Kingston, Jamaica, 218 
Kite-flying in the Bahamas, 324 



Lace Plant, the, 426 

Lago das Furnas, Azores, 487, 
488 

Lagoa, volcano of, Madeira, 71 

La Guayra, Venezuela, 168, 170, 
195, 198, 199 

Land-crabs, 335 

Las Furnas, Azores, 476, 480, 482- 
485 

Lazaretto, the, Jamaica, 245 

Lees, Sir Charles, Governor of the 
Bahamas, visit to, 321 

Lefroy, Sir Henry, cited, 427 

Lemon-grass,- 238 

Levada de Metade, Madeira, 62 

Levadas, the (water-courses), Ma- 
deira, 49, 52 

Lianes, 268 



Machete (axe), 155 

Machete (musical instrument), 69, 
72 

Machico, Madeira, tradition concern- 
ing, 32 ; annual festival at, 68, 
72 

Machim, Bobert, tradition of his 
discovery of Madeira, 32 

Macuto, Venezuela, 169 

Madeira, history of, 32 ; the British 
at, 34 ; peculiarities of its moun- 
tain scenery, 36 ; funeral at, 40 ; 
cultivation of sugar at, 67 ; fossil- 
beds at, 74 

Maidenhair fern, 277 

Mango-trees, 222 

Mangrove-tree, the, 433 

Mansfield, Colonel, Minister Pleni- 
potentiary at Venezuela, cited, 187, 
201 

Margarita, Venezuela, 164 

Maraccas Falls, Trinidad, 150, 153, 

157 
Marine-plants, 365 



528 



INDEX. 



MAR 
Marine wonders in the tropics, 311, 

. 313. 314 

M'Lain, Mr., quoted, 344 

Medicinal baths, Azores, 482 

Medusas, 469 

Memorial tablet, Port Antonio, 
Jamaica, 283 

Menu of a dinner at Madeira, 65 ; 
at Trinidad, 114; at Venezuela, 
171 ; at Kingston, Jamaica, 242 

1 Message of Peace ' (mission yacht), 

3°9 
Metaphalos-tree, the, 128 
'Mike ' (angel-fish), 406 
Milk-tree (Tanghinia lactaria), the, 

112, 145 
Moneague, Jamaica, 258, 260 
Mongoose, the, 199, 246, 253, 367 
Montagu, Captain Victor, 394, 395 
Montagu Fort, Nassau, Bahamas, 

310 
Monte Quinta, Madeira, 43 
Moonlight effects at sea in the 

tropics, 289 
Moore, Thomas, the poet, his cala- 
bash-tree, Bermuda, 424 
Moriche palms (tree of life), 128 . 
Mount Church, Madeira, 43 
Mount Diablo Pass, Jamaica, 256, 263 
Mount Edgcumbe, Plymouth, 509 
Mount Langton, Bermuda, 398 
Mud-geysers, Azores, 483 
Mule episode, a, 184 
Muletas (old-fashioned fishing-boats) , 
13 



Nassau, Bahamas, 319, 322 

Navigators, the old, 362 

Navy, training for the, 3 

Nautical entertainment, a, 89 

Nautilidse, 469 

Needham, Sir Joseph, visit to, at 

Trinidad, 138, 158 
Negro pilot, a, 299 

— rhyming alphabet, a, 232 

— toilet, 218, 219 



PIC 

Neptune's Grotto, Bermuda, 420 
Newcastle, Jamaica, 209, 231 
Night in the tropics, 119, 289 
Norham Castle, in the olden time, 

20, 21 
'Norham Castle' (steamer), the, I, 

4 ; in a storm, 5 ; accident on 

board, 6 ; her decks after the 

storm, 19 
'Northampton' (flag-ship), the, 

aground at the Bermudas, 391,393, 

402, 446 
Nutmeg-tree, the, 108 



Ocho Bios, Jamaica, 270, 277 

Octopus, the, 410 

' Olga ' (German frigate), the, 97, 

159 
Opossums, 166, 368 
Orange-groves, Jamaica, 263 
Oranges, cultivation of, 255, 264, 

475, 478, 491 
Orchids, 158; variegated, 256 
Orchis, white, 256 
' Orinoco ' (steamship), the, 401 
Over-population at the Azores, 493 



Paintebs' Vale, Bermuda, 421 

Palheiro, the, Funchal, 41 

Palisades, the, Jamaica, 214, 215 

Palmella, Portugal, 14, 17 

Palms, 177 

Pandanus (plant), the, no 

' Papyro-pectens ' band, the, on board 

the ' Sunbeam,' 89 
Para nuts, in 
Parasol-ants, 131, 133 
Passion-flower fruit, the, 142 
Paxiuba palm, the, 177 
Pearls, 348 

Penha d'Aguia, Madeira, 68, 71 
Penitentiary, the, Jamaica, 233 
Perestrello, the Portuguese explorer, 

33 
Pico, Azores, 471, 487 



INDEX. 



529 



PIC 

' Picture-tree,' the, 145 
Pilotage, expensive, 298 
Pilot-fish (Naucrates ductor), 407 
Pimento-tree (Eugenia Pimento), 

the, 274 
Pine-apples, 326, 342 ; cultivation 

of, 343 ; 345. 360 
Piper obtusifolium, 424 
Pitcher-plant (Nepenthe), the, 256 
Pitch Lake, /Trinidad, 124 
Plantain, wild (Carina indica), the, 

181 
Poinsettia-tree, the, 258 
Point Lucrezia, Cuba, 292 
Poizo Peak, Madeira, 59 
Polo, 230 

Pombal, Marquis de, ^^ 
Ponta Delgada, Azores, 473, 479 
Porcupine-fish (Chilomycterus reti- 

culatus), 407 
Port Antonio, Jamaica, 281 
Port au Prince, 287 
Port Henderson, Jamaica, 245, 246 
Port of Spain, Trinidad, 99, 137 
Port Koyal, Jamaica, 209, 212, 215, 

216 
Portuguese men-of-war, 442 

— fishing-boats, 13 

— hay -boats, 17 
Postscript, a grateful, 510 
Potatoes, sweet, 82, 91 
Potter's Cay, Bahamas, 310 
Pratt's ' cups,' 243 

Prestoe, Mr., Curator of Botanic Gar- 
dens. Trinidad, visit to, 105-112, 
158' 

' Pride of India ' (tree), the, 425 

Programme of the ' Su abeam ' Popu- 
lar and Nautical Entertainment, 
90 

Puff-fish, 407 

Pumice-stone, 494 

Punkah, the, 248 



QtJAEANTINE, 394 

Quinta Davis, the, Madeira, 58 



SAN 
Babacal, Madeira, 49, 52 
Bages (tidal waves), Bahamas, 361 
Bailway from Caracas to La Gnayra, 

I9S-I97 
Bainbows, 462 
Bame Head, 507 
Bats, 173 

' Bed Jacket ' (clipper), the, 30 
Bees, Dr., 415 
Beptiles, 160 
Bevolving storms, 371 
Bibeira Grande, Azores, 479 
Bibiero dos Soccorridos, Madeira, 

36 
Bibiero Frio, Madeira, 61, 69 
' Eoaring Waterfall,' the, Jamaica, 

272 
' Bobber of Moneague,' the, 261 
Bobinson Crusoe's Island, 90 
Boble-tree (Gatalpa longissima), the, 

177 
Bodney Hall Court-house, Jamaica, 

256 
' Boof-tree ' (Entada scandens), the 

265, 268 
Buskin, quoted, 237 



Sabkina Island, Azores, 477 

Salary of the President of Venezuela, 

188 
Salmon-fishing, 450 
Samona, West Indies, 288 
Sampson Stamp, the ' sponger,' 308, 

318, 329 
Sand-box-tree (Hura crepitans), the, 

178 
Sand Hills, Bermudas, 437 
San Domingo, 285, 287 
San Fernando, Trinidad, 135 
San Josef, Trinidad, 150 
San Salvador, Bahamas, 361, 362 
Santa Anna, Madeira, 62, 63, 67 
Santa Clara Hotel, the, Funchal, 28, 

78 
Santa Cruz, Madeira, 76 
Santa Maddalena, Trinidad, 130 



3 t 



INDEX. 



SAN 
Santo Antonio da Serra, Madeira, 
• 71 

Sao Lourenzo, Madeira, 73 
Sapodilla (fruit), the, 323 
Sapucaia-nut-tree (Lecythis Zabu- 

cajo), the, in 
Sargasso Sea, the, 461 

— weed, 3 6 3-3 6 5> 442, 461 
Sargassum bacciferitm, 364 

— humulifolium, 365 

— salicifolium, 365 

— uvoides, 364 

— vulgare, 364 
Savannahs, Jamaica, 264, 269 
Schizopetalus, the, 107 
Sea-eggs, 333 

— feathers, 297, 313 

— pens, 409 

— scum, 205 

— 'water bathing as a preventive 
of thirst, 100 

Sedan-chair, English, at Funchal, 
78 

Sergeant-major fish, 407 

Serpents, 160 

Sette Cidades, Azores, 486 

' Seven bishops ' in concla <?e at 
Jamaica, 211 

Seymour Haden, Mr., 71, 78 

Shaddocks, 323 

Sharks, 210, 211, 400 

Shaw-Lefevre, Mr., 77 

Shells, 303, 348, 349 

Ships, at sea, the relative advan- 
tages of small and large craft, 
18 

Signalling at sea, 455 

Silk-cotton-tree, the, 268, 345-347 

' Singing-tree,' the, 340 

'Sir Roger ' (poodle), at sea, 6; in 
the fruit -market at Lisbon, 15 ; 
on board an emigrant vessel, 26 ; 
in a Madeira watercourse, 49 ; 
his encounter with a peacock, 66 
among the negroes at Trinidad, 
120; in the streets of Caracas, 
185 ; his encounter with a mon- 



SUN 

goose, 253 ; buggy-riding, 266 ; 

under sanitary inspection, 394 
Sloth-tree (Cecropia), the, 29 
Snapper-fish (Latjanus), 407 
Somers, Sir George, wrecked on. the 

Bermudas, 429 
Somers Islands (Bermudas), 391 
Somerset Island, Bermudas, 415 
Sounding machine, a, 506 
South America, first view of, 95 
Spanish angel-fish, 313 

— doubloons, 194 
Spanish Town, Jamaica, 248 
Spanish Wells, Eleuthera, Bahamas, 

360 
Sponge, 312, 336, 337, 411 

— fishing, 301, 302, 338 

— glasses, 301 

' Sponger,' a, 308 

Sponge-yard, Messrs. Sawyer's, 

Bahamas, 336 
Squalls at sea, 208, 379, 3S2 
Squids, 409, 410 

St. David's Island, Bermudas, 427 
St. George's Town, Bermudas, 429 
St. John Ambulance Association, 

198, 302 
St. Michael's, Azores, 473 
St. Thomas, Vale of, Jamaica, 262 
State of innocence, a, 493 
Steering at sea, 373, 386, 387 
Stephanotis, the, 107 
Stirrup Cay Lighthouse, 300-301 
Stone-boat, a, 434 
Stone-pines, at Madeira, 41 
Storms at sea, 8 

— in the tropics, 378 

— law of, 86, 370-374 
Strelitzia regmce., 29 
Sucking-fish (Echineis remora), 168 
Sugar, cultivation of, at Madeira, 67 ; 

at Barbadoes, 101 ; at Santa 
Maddalena, Trinidad, 130 
'Sunbeam,' met at Madeira, 24; 
her magical appearance at night 
in the tropics, 289 ; at the Baha- 
mas, 304 ; her sea-going qualities, 



INDEX. 



531 



SUN 
374, 387; log of, 464-468, 516- 
519; opening of a theatre on 
board of, 503 ; list of persons on 
board, 515 

Sunrise in the tropics, 223 

— at sea, 463 

Sunset in the tropics, 83, 204, 366, 

444. 465 
Sweet potatoes, 82, 91 
Swizzle-stickS, 152 



Tacsonia, red, 58 

Tagus, the, 12 

Tanier (Caladium sagittcefolium), 
the, 117 

Telegrams from the tropics, cost of, 
105 

Temperature of air and water, 520 

'Tenedos ' (screw corvette), the, 449 

Testigo Islands, 163 

Theatricals on board the ' Sunbeam,' 
503-506 

' Thermometer ' architecture, 282 

' Thompson's Folly,' 310 

Thomson, Sir William, his sound- 
ing machine, 506 

Til, black (laurel native to Madeira ; 
Oreodaphne fastens) , 30 

Timit Cap, the, 107, 166 

Tobago (the real Eobinson Crusoe 
island), 90 ; volcanic origin of, 93 ; 
products of, 94 

Tonquin bean, 201 

Torpedo practice, 449 

Train stopped by locusts, 191 

Training for the navy, 3 

Traveller's palm, 177 

Treasure-trove, 347 

Tree-ferns, 238, 269 

Trinidad, 94; Government House 
and Botanic Gardens, 106 ; culti- 
vation of the cacao at, 108, 140; 
fauna of, 118 ; date of colonisation 
of, 121; pitch lake at, 124; culti- 
vation of sugar at, 130; flora of, 
I 3 I > ^S. 139; cultivation of coffee 



WES 
at, 143 ; coolie fete at, 148 ; ball 
at, 157 ; jewellery at, 164, 165 
Tropical seas and coral-reefs, resem- 
blance of, to glaciers and snows, 
3i8 
Tuberoses, cultivation of, 254 
Tulip-tree, Madeira, planted by 

Captain Cook, 30 
Turkeys, 489 
Turks Islands, 291 
Turtle-kraal, a, 353 
Turtle-ponds, 215 
Turtles, 215 

Up-Paek Camp, Jamaica, 225, 226, 

230 
' Urgent ' (H.M.S.), 213 

Vassal's-Grass, 262 
Yegetable-ivory plant (Pliytelephas 

macrocarpa), 109 
Vegetation in the tropics, 340 
Velvet-fish, 314 
Venezuela, 167; general description 

of the country. 200 ; its industries 

and exports, 201 
Verteuil, M. de, quoted, 132 
Victoria Hotel, Nassau, Bahamas, 

352 
Vinte-cinco Fontes (Twenty-five 

Fountains), Madeira, 51 
'Voyage in the Sunbeam' (book), 

interest shown in, 351 
Vultures, 118 

Walsingham Caves, Bermuda, 422, 

423 
Water, temperature of, 520 
Water courses, Madeira, 49. 52 

— mill, Madeira, 48 

— spouts, 460 

— tunnel, Madeira, 48 
Watling Island, Bahamas, 362 
Wedding-day, anniversary of, 66, 73 
West Indian barracks, 225 



532 



INDEX. 



WES 
West Indian residences, 161, 274 
Whales, 428 
Whitebait, 408 
Wild-fowl shooting, 353 
Woodgate, Major, his kindness at 

Jamaica, 245, 280 
Wreckers, 299, 300 
Wrecks, at the Bermudas, 427 



ZAE 

Yachts, Bennuda, 439, 440 
Yams, 486 

Young, Captain, visit to, Jj 
Yunque de Baracoa, Cuba, 291. 292 



Zaego, early Portuguese explorer, 32, 

34, 36 



A 






'"m 



V U 







